天南海北的意思 天南海北2010年第3期

天南海北的意思 天南海北2010年第3期

次

分享：

　　Big Ben

　　Big Ben was built in 1858. It is the bell that chimes(钟敲响)the hours in the Clock Tower of the British Houses of Parliament(议会),Londa,and is so called because Sir Benjamin Hall(主持建钟的政府官员本杰明•霍尔爵士),as the Chief Commissioner(政府长官) of Works,was the minister responsible(负责) for its installation(就职). The famous deep,resonant(洪亮的) boom of the bell is regulary broadcast by the BBC all over the world.
　　The way to Big Ben is up a spiral(螺旋形的) staircase of 374 steps. The Roman numerals on the clock face are two feet high and the pendulum(摆) is 13 feet long. Big Ben itself weighs 13.5 tons. When the clock was installed(安装),two men used to wind(上发条) it every week. Now it is wound by electricity.
　　The Tower of Pisa
　　The Tower of Pisa is the bell tower of the cathedral(大教堂) of Pisa in Tuscany,Italy. It leans because,when the building was half completed,the soil under one half of the circular structure(圆形结构) began to subside(下沉) and the tower tipped(倾斜).
　　Work on the tower was begun in 1173,but was discontinued for a century after the subsidence. However,in 1275 architects(建筑师) devised a plan to compensate(补偿) for the tilt(倾斜).Two storeys,the third and the fifth,were built out of line with the others and closer to the vertical(垂直面) in an effort to alter(改变) the tower’s centre of gravity(重心).
　　But the leaning has continued to increase gradually during the centuries. Pumping to keep water away from the surrounding ground and the injection of cement(贯注水泥) grout into the foundations and surrounding subsoil have been tried in recent years,but without success.
　　The Kremlin
　　The Kremlin was the palace of the Russian Tsars(沙皇) in Moscow until Peter the Great(彼得大帝)(1672-1725) moved the whole imperial court(皇室) to the newly-founded city of St Petersburg(圣彼得堡) early in the 18th century.
　　In 1922 Moscow was chosen as the capital of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. Once again the Kremlin became the headquarters of government.
　　Encircled by great battlements(城墙) erected(修建) in the 15th century,the citadel(城堡) covers an area of 65 acres(英亩) and is almost a city itself. Around the walls are 19 towers and five gates.
　　Within the walls are churches,four cathedrals and many palaces. In 1955 the Kremlin was opened to the public and the palaces now exhibit the riches of Tsarist days.
　　Outside the walls is Red Square,900 yards long by 175 yards wide,where the great military parades(军事检阅) are held annually(每年) to commemorate(纪念) the revolution of 1917.