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From its earliest days,Britain was an object of desire.
自遠古時代起 不列顛就為人所覬覦
Tacitus declared it "pretium victoriae" worth the conquest,
塔西佗稱其為"值得征服的土地"
the best compliment that could occur to a Roman.
在羅馬人眼中 這無疑是最高的贊譽
He had never visited these shores but was nonetheless convinced
他從未踏足這片土地 盡管如此他仍堅信
that Britannia was rich in gold.
不列顛尼亞是一個黃金夾道的富庶之地
Silver was abundant too. Apparently so were pearls,
同樣取之不盡的還有白銀與珍珠
although Tacitus had heard they were grey,
盡管塔西佗聽說那里的珍珠
like the overcast, rain-heavy skies,
就像那里常年陰霾籠罩的天空一般灰暗
and the natives only bother to collected them when cast up on the shore.
卻盈千累萬 當(dāng)?shù)厝硕疾恍栀M心采擷 等著珍珠沖上岸就好
As far as the Roman historians were concerned,
古羅馬歷史學(xué)家曾認為
Britannia might be well off at the edge of the world,
不列顛尼亞遠在世界之端
but it was off the edge of their world,not in a howling barbarian wilderness.
但事實上 她只是在羅馬世界的邊緣 且并非未開化的蠻夷之地
If the same writers had been able to travel in time as well as space
假使這些作家可以穿越時空
to the northernmost of our islands, the Orcades our modern Orkney
游歷至不列顛最北端 如今的奧克尼群島
they would have seen something much more astonishing than pearls:
令他們瞠目結(jié)舌的將不僅是金山銀海
The unmistakable signs of a civilisation thousands of years older than Rome.
還有這里無疑早于羅馬數(shù)千年的文明的遺跡
