2,400-year-old flush toilet discovered in China
Archeologists in China have found the remains of what may be the world's oldest known flush toilet.
中国的考古学家发现了世界上最古老的冲水马桶的残骸。
archeologist：
英 /ˌɑːkɪˈɒlədʒɪst 美 /ˌɑrkiˈɑlədʒɪst
考古学者
Broken parts of the 2,400-year-old lavatory, as well as a bent flush pipe, were unearthed last summer by a research team among ancient palace ruins in the Yueyang archaeological site in the central city of Xi'an, according to Chinese state media.
据中国官方媒体报道，去年夏天一个研究小组在位于西安市中心栎阳考古遗址的古代宫殿废墟中，发掘出了有着2400年历史的厕所的破损部分以及一根弯曲的冲水管道。
①lavatory：
英 /ˈlævətri 美 /ˈlævətɔːri
抽水马桶;厕所;卫生间;洗手间
②bent：
英 /bent 美 /bent
弯曲;(使)倾斜，偏向;弄弯(或折起)
Details of the find were released last week, sparking widespread interest in China and offering a rare insight into the privileged and competitively advanced world of the country's ancient ruling elite.
这一发现的详情上周一经公布，就引发了人们对中国的广泛兴趣，这也为中国古代统治精英的特权和强有力的优势提供了难得的视角。
elite：
英 /eɪˈliːt 美 /eɪˈliːt
出类拔萃的人(或物);精华;上层人士,掌权人物
Described by researchers as a "luxury object," the toilet was thought to have been located inside the palace, with a pipe leading to an outdoor pit, according to state-owned China Daily.
据官方媒体《中国日报》报道，研究人员称这座厕所为“奢侈品”。这个厕所被认定位于宫殿内部，有一根通向室外地坑的管道。
pit：
英 /pɪt 美 /pɪt
矿井;深坑;深洞
Liu Rui, a researcher at the Institute of Archeology at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, who was part of the excavation team, told state media the toilet would have likely been reserved for high-ranking officials during the Warring States Period (475-221 BC) and the later Han Dynasty (206 BC-AD 220). He added that servants would likely have poured water into the toilet bowl every time it was used.
中国社会科学院考古研究所研究员刘瑞是发掘团队的一员，他告诉官方媒体，在战国时期（公元前475年-公元前221年）和后来的汉代（公元前206年-公元220年），这座厕所很可能是为高级官员服务的。他补充说，每次使用完马桶后，仆人很可能都会往马桶里倒水。
excavation：
英 /ˌekskəˈveɪʃn 美 /ˌekskəˈveɪʃn
(对古物的)发掘;发掘现场;挖掘
"The flush toilet is concrete proof of the importance the ancient Chinese attached to sanitation," Liu said, adding that there were very few records of indoor toilets in ancient times.
刘瑞说道：“抽水马桶是古代中国人重视卫生的具体证明。”她又补充说，古代室内厕所的记录很少。
"The toilet issue is no small thing, it's an important aspect of building civilized cities and countryside," Xi said in an article in the state-owned People's Daily in 2018. "This work should be advanced as a specific task of rural revitalization and such shortcomings that affect the quality of people's life should be filled with great efforts."
领导人在2018年《人民日报》的一篇文章中表示：“厕所问题不是一件小事，它是建设文明城市和农村的一个重要方面。应该把这项工作作为乡村改革的具体任务来推进，应该大力弥补影响人民生活质量的不足。”
Prior to the newly announced discovery, the invention of the first flush toilet was widely credited to English courtier John Harington, who supposedly installed one for Queen Elizabeth in the 16th century, though 4,000-year-old drainage systems that might have been connected with toilets have been found in northwest India.
在这项最新发现官宣之前，英国大臣John Harington被广泛认为是第一个冲水马桶的发明者，据说他在16世纪为伊丽莎白女王安装了一个冲水马桶，尽管在印度西北部已经发现了4000年前可能与马桶相连的排水系统。
courtier：
英 /ˈkɔːtiə(r) 美 /ˈkɔːrtiər
(尤指旧时的)侍臣，侍从，廷臣
The ruins from Yueyang, the former capital of Qin State and later the first capital of the Han Dynasty, were discovered in the 1980s. The recent find is part of a broader effort to understand ancient Chinese dynasties, including how people lived and how their cities were constructed, the Institute said in a statement announcing the discoveries.
栎阳遗址是20世纪80年代发现的，栎阳是秦国的首都，后来是汉代的第一个首都。该研究所在宣布这些发现的声明中表示，最近的发现是了解中国古代王朝的更广泛努力的一部分，包括能够更加了解人们如何生活以及如何建造城市。
Archaeologists are now analyzing soil samples collected from the toilet in hopes of finding out what people ate during that time, according to China Daily.
据《中国日报》报道，考古学家现在正在分析从厕所收集的土壤样本，希望找出人们在那段时期的饮食。
翻译：老戴
编辑：老张
全网搜索：老戴讲英语
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