SECTION 4

Good afternoon, everyone! This is the first seminar in preparation for our archaeological fieldwork in Namibia; we are fantastically lucky to have received partial research funding for this trip from our Institute, so I shall expect 200% attention and participation from you all.

大家下午好！这是我们为在纳米比亚考古工作做准备的首个研讨会；我们已经十分荣幸的收到了来自我们研究院的一部分研究经费，因此我期待大家百分之二百的注意力和参与。

First in this seminar, I'm going to give a brief introduction to contemporary research on rock art, and in the second part I'm going to give you some do's and don'ts for our fieldwork trip in April - so please listen very carefully.

在研讨会的第一部分我将简略的介绍一下关于岩画艺术的当代研究，第二部分我要来说一说我们四月野外考察工作的注意事项，所以我希望大家认真聆听。

I'm first going to focus on the interpretation of rock art in Namibia.

首先让我们先来关注一下对纳米比亚岩画艺术的解读。

We are very fortunate to be going to an area where you can find some of the most important sites in the entire world.

我们将有幸进入到世界上最重要的一些现场进行考察。

And I hope to show you how easy it is for everyone to make mistakes in looking at cultures which are different from our own - the first and most important lesson we have to learn.

我希望能够让你们认识到，在解读与我们不同的文化时多么容易犯错。这是我们要学的第一课，也是最重要的一课。

In Namibia there are both paintings and engravings - that's where the surface of the rock is cut out.

纳米比亚的岩石艺术既有岩画也有岩刻——在岩石的表层进行凿刻。

Many of the engravings show footprints of animals and most scholars used to think that the purpose of these was simple and obvious: this rock art was like a school book with pictures to teach children about tracks: which track belonged to which animal - giraffe, lion and so on.

很多雕刻的内容都与动物的足迹有关，很多学者认为这些雕刻的目的十分明显：这些岩石就像带着插图的教科书一样，它们教会孩子们辨识动物的行踪：什么样的足迹属于什么样的动物——长颈鹿或狮子等等。

But there were some mysteries.

但这种说法无法解释一些谜团。

First, when you look at a typical Namibian painting or engraving, you see the tracks are repeated, there are dozens of tracks for the same animal.

首先，很多纳米比亚岩画或岩刻上有大量重复的足迹。比如同一只动物的足迹可能会有数十个。

You'd expect just one clear illustration if the reason - the aim - was to teach tracking.

而如果这些岩画的目的是教会辨识动物行踪的话，一个清晰的例子就足够了。

Now there were two more problems.

除此之外还有两个问题。

Why are some of the engravings of animals very accurate as you'd expect - all clearly identifiable - and others quite unrealistic?

为何有的岩刻中的动物刻画得非常精确，很容易辨识，而有些却非常的不切实际？

And another mystery - some of these unrealistic animals - that's in the engravings - seem to be half human.

还有另外一个谜团——就是岩刻中这些形象不真实的动物看起来都是半兽半人。

Some, for example, have got human faces.

其中有些长着人类的脸。

Many researchers now think that these were pictures the wise men engraved of themselves.

不少研究者现在认为这些是部落中的智者为自己雕刻的自画像。

They believed they could use magic to control the animals they had drawn, so the hunters could then catch them for food.

他们相信自己能够有魔力控制他们刻画的动物，这样猎人就能猎食到这些动物。

This shows you some of the dangers of coming from one culture to another, as we'll be doing, without understanding it fully.

从这些例子我们就能够感受到从一种文化踏入另一种我们并未充分理解的文化的危险；而这也正是我们将要做的。

Scholars imagined that children looked at rock art pictures to learn to track - just because they themselves had learnt skills from pictures; many researchers now believe that rock art had a much more complex purpose.

学者们之前认为孩子从岩画中学会辨识动物的行踪，不过是因为他们自己从图像中进行技能的学习；很多研究者现在认为岩画艺术有着更为复杂的功能。

And we'll talk more about it next week!

我们下周会就这个话题进行更多的交流。

Now before I invite you to join in a discussion in this second part of the seminar, I'd like to make some very important points about our fieldwork - and in fact any field trip to look at rock art.

在开始我们第二部分的讨论之前，我想先说几点和我们的现场考察工作——实际上和所有的岩石艺术考察工作——相关的特别重要的事项。

We're going to a number of sites, and we won't always be together.

我们要去考察很多的现场，而且我们经常要分头行事。

The single largest problem faced by people who manage the sites is - yes, I'm sure you've guessed - damage caused by visitors, even though it's usually unintentional.

所有考古现场的管理人员面临的最大的问题——你们应该已经猜到了——就是访客造成的毁坏，尽管通常是无意造成的。

Whenever you do go to a site, don't forget you can learn many things from observing at a distance instead of walking all over it.

到现场的时候别忘了你并不总是需要四处走动，从远处观察就能获得大量的信息。

This can really help to reduce visitor pressure.

这样能够真正减少游客带来的压力。

People often say, 'Well, there's only two of us and just this one time', but maybe thousands of people are saying the same thing.

人们总喜欢说：“就这一次，就咱们两个人”，但也许成千上万的人都在说同样的话。

And then some basic rules to guide you - we'll have our own camp near a village, but remember never to camp on a site if you go on your own.

除此之外还有一些其他的要遵守的基本规则——我们会在村子旁边搭建营地，但是如果你独自行动的话，千万不要在现场露营。

It may be disrespectful to the people of that culture, and certainly don't make fires, however romantic it may seem.

当地人会认为这是对他们文化的不敬，还有千万不要生火，不管那看起来有多浪漫。

It's really dangerous in dry areas, and you can easily burn priceless undiscovered material by doing so.

在干燥地区生火很危险，一些尚未出土的无价之宝可能就被烧毁了。

So, how are we going to enjoy the rock art on our field trip?

那么我们在这次现场考察中应该如何欣赏这些岩画艺术呢？

By looking at it, drawing it and photographing it - NEVER by touching it or even tracing it.

我们可以认真观察、描绘，可以拍照，但绝不能触碰或在表面临摹。

Rock art is fragile and precious.

岩画艺术十分珍贵，而又十分脆弱。

Remember that climbing on rocks and in caves can destroy in a moment what has lasted for centuries.

时刻记住在岩石上或在岩洞里攀爬很可能会将长存了很多世纪的东西毁于一旦。

So no heroics in Namibia, please!

所以在纳米比亚就请不要逞英雄了！

Try to be extra careful and help others to be too.

一定要尽量小心，同时也要督促其他人小心行事。

And lastly please don't even move rocks or branches to take photographs - you should leave the site intact - I'm sure I can rely on you to do that.

最后一点，请不要移动岩石或树枝来拍照——你们应该保持现场的完整性——我相信你们都能做到的。

Well, that's about all I want to say before today's first discussion, but if you have any questions please ask them now - and don't forget you'll find some fascinating information about world-wide sites on the Internet.

好的，这就是今天咱们的第一次讨论前我要说的。如果你们还有什么问题请现在提出来。同时别忘了你们在互联网上也能找到很多全球考古地点的信息。

Right, first question then?

好了。谁来提第一个问题？