Unit 2 Witnessing time

Yuanmingyuan

The ruins of Yuanmingyuan are located in the suburbs of Beijing to the north-west of Qinghua University. Yuanmingyuan dates back to the Qing Dynasty. It has the reputation of being “the garden of gardens”. Unfortunately, it was destroyed in a fire. Our government has taken measures to repair it and much restoration work still needs to be done.

With the fast development of the modern world, the problems of preserving cultural heritage sites are becoming more and more serious. Nowadays many historic sites have been damaged, leaving only part of the ruins. Do you think it is necessary to rebuild them?

Look at these pictures of some famous historic sites and discuss The Colosseum

When was the Colosseum built? What was it used for? How big is it? In the 1st century BC. It was an amphitheatre or arena that was used for displays of combat and wild-beast shows. It was designed to hold 50,000 spectators.

Classical gardens of Suzhou

What is Suzhou famous for? Have you visited the classical gardens there? If so, what did you see? It is famous for its splendid scenery, especially its classical gardens.

Angkor Wat

Where was the temple complex built? When was it built? Why was it built? In Cambodia. In the early years of the 12th century. It was built to honour the Hindu God Vishnu.

St Basil’s Cathedral

When and where was the Cathedral built? Do you know anything special about the Cathedral? In Moscow between 1555 and 1560. The Cathedral sonsists of nine individual churches, each of which is crowned by a unique tower. The central tower is surrounded by eight towers, each topped with an eight-point star symbolizing the Christian Church as a guiding light for mankind.

Discuss When we talk about Greece, what do you think of? What do you know about Greece? What do you know about Athens? Do you know anything about Athens and the Olympic Games?

Reading The Acropolis now

the Acropolis

In the 5th century BC. It was made of marble. UNESCO. When was the Acropolis built? What was the Acropolis made of? Who gave the Acropolis its World Heritage listing? In the 5th century BC. It was made of marble. UNESCO.

Fast reading

1. In which fields did the Greeks make contributions to Western civilization? In philosophy, science, mathematics, art, architecture, theatre, politics and sport.

2. Where was the Acropolis built? Why? On the hill called the Sacred Rock in the centre of the city. It was built there so that it was convenient for everyone to get to. Also, because it was on the hill, the Acropolis could be seen from every part of the city.

3. How have so many ancient monuments been damaged? They have been damaged partly by natural things like earthquakes, and partly by man.

4. What was the last major destruction done to the Acropolis by man? The last major destruction occurred with the theft of many of the best sculptures in 1801, when an Englishman started to take them to London.

5. What is the aim of the committee set up in 1975? Its aim is to undertake the complete, professional restoration of the Acropolis.

6. Why is the committee undertaking educational work? Because they believe that the prevention of damage from ignorance and from people not caring about protecting the monument is very important.

More important historic buildings would be damaged. 7. What would happen if people did not learn about damage prevention? More important historic buildings would be damaged.

The article describes some of the cases of damage done to the Acropolis. List what being done to solve each problem.

a steady cleaning programme Causes Details Actions Chemical acid rain from air pollution Biological plant roots and bird droppings Natural earthquakes Mechanical bad reconstruction Human deliberate damage walking around the Acropolis stealing stones a steady cleaning programme a steady cleaning programme to be fixed to be fixed educational work ask for return

Find these new words and expressions in the article Find these new words and expressions in the article. Guess their meanings from the context. Then match each word or expression with the correct definition.

in particular (line 17) altitude (line 21) smooth (line 44) d--- especially, particularly a--- height j --- not rough

seized control of (lines 52-53) friction (line 69) restore (line 76) c--- took over, controlled b --- disagreement or conflict f --- bring back to the original condition

unintentionally (line 85) reconstruction (line 99) e --- without intention, not deliberately, by accident i --- restoring, bringing to the original condition

steady (line 108) consensus (line 117) h --- regular g --- an opinion that all people agree with

Part D Answers: Athens 2. Athena 3. people 4. plant 5. government 6. undertake 7. ignorance 8. conservation 9. monument 10. sculptures

Read the text again and choose the best answers according to the text:

Which of the followings was not a Greek invention? A. The Western alphabet. B. Roman alphabet. C. Architecture. D. Marathon

2. Why was the Acropolis built on the hill called the Sacred Rock in the centre of the city? A. To associate ancient Greek civilization with the capital city of Athens. B. It was constructed at a high altitude above the city in honour of Athens. C. Because there are three main temples to Athens. D. Because it was convenient for everyone to get to and could be seen from every past of the city.

3. In which year did the Acropolis receive a World Heritage listing from UNESO? A. 1835 B. 1975 C. 1987 D. 2004

The Acropolis now Work in pairs or groups and fill in the form after reading the text. 2 Significance The ancient Greeks as well as the Acropolis have had a greater (1) _____________ on Western civilization. impact/effect

26 convenience made History It was built about (2) _____ centuries ago on the hill so as to bring great (3) ____________ to every visitor. Though (4) ______ of marble, the buildings of the Acropolis were unable to avoid damage. They were destroyed by many foreign invaders, such as the Turks and the Italians. convenience made

the industrial pollution History From 1801 to 1816, many of the best sculptures were (5) _______ and sold to the British government. During the period from 1835 to 1935, the Acropolis was being damaged because of the unsuccessful restoration, the visitors and (6) ______________________. stolen the industrial pollution

World Heritage reconstructing /restoring History In 1975, the Greek government established a committee to help (7) _________ history. In 1987, the Acropolis was listed as a (8) ______________ by UNESCO. Before the 2004 Athens Olympic Games, great progress had been made in (9) ______________ ___________ the monument. preserve World Heritage reconstructing /restoring

2 damaging Current situation The committee is continuing its work by undertaking the complete, professional restoration of the Acropolis as well as undertaking important educational work by teaching people how to avoid (10) _______ important historic buildings like the Acropolis. 2 damaging

Have you ever visited a World Heritage site Have you ever visited a World Heritage site? Discuss these questions with a partner. Use the following conversation as an example.

A: Have you ever been to a World Heritage site? B: Yes. Last year my parents took me to Mount Huangshan. A: Oh, I’ve always wanted to go there. What was it like? B: It was really beautiful. There were lots of pine trees, rocks and hot springs. Have you ever been to any famous sites? A: …