永遠的維納斯
The Aphrodite of Melos is made of marble and represents vivdly the goddess Aphrodite. This statue had earned it's name the Venus de Milo or Venus de Melos, because in 1820, a peasant had found it on the Greek island of Melos and it was named after the island where it was found.
The statue shows Aphrodite semi-nude and with a robe wrapped around her legs. For hundreds of years the statue had remained buried in an underground cavern. On account of this, the statue had suffered significant damage and it was found in two parts. Later it was replaced together and sent to France, because the Marquis de Riviere had brought the statue and had given it to Louis XVIII of France. Pieces of arms and a pedestal with an inscription, were also found in the cave, but these were later lost and never found again.
No one knows who created the statue of the Aphrodite of Melos. It is probably the work of the Greek artist Alexandros of Antioch. This name was inscribed on the block of stone on the pedestal that was later lost, but this is doubted from scholars because it may not have been the corrected block with the Venus de Milo, so this had erased the attribution to Alexandros. Some scholars had attributed the work of the statue to Praxiteles. It is said that it was sculpted around the second century B.C.
米洛的維納斯
“米洛的阿芙洛狄特”是由大理石制成的，惟妙惟肖地刻畫了女神阿芙洛狄特。在1820年，一位農民在希臘的米洛島上發現了這尊雕像，此后它就以這個島而得名，被稱為“米洛的維納斯”。
雕像展示了阿芙洛狄特半裸的形象，一條長袍遮住了她的雙腿。數百年來，這尊雕像被深埋于一個地下洞穴中。因此，雕像嚴重受損，當它被發現時已經斷為兩截。后來它被修復在一起，并送往了法國，因為馬爾凱斯?德里維爾已購買了這尊雕像，把它送給法國國王路易十八。在洞中也發現了雕像胳膊和刻有銘文的底座的殘片，但是后來這些東西均被丟失，而且從此再未找到過。
沒有人知道誰創作了雕像“米洛的維納斯”。它可能是希臘雕刻家，安屈克亞的亞歷山德羅斯的作品。因為在那塊后來丟失的雕像底座上刻著這個名字，但是學者們對此表示懷疑，因為這可能不是真正的“米洛的維納斯”的底座，這就使亞歷山德羅斯是否是雕像的作者產生置疑。一些學者認為這尊雕像是普拉克西特利斯的作品。它據說是作于公元前2世紀左右。
注釋：
1． be made of：made 后接不同的介詞短語，表示不同的意思。比如：a. A Stew can be made with vegetables. 這句表示蔬菜只是燜菜中的一種成分。 b. A stew can be made of vegetable. 這里表示蔬菜是燜菜中的主要成分。c. The wine is made from graps. Made from 指用……加工制成，經過加工，成品已非原來的樣子。
2． be named after：name 除了作名詞，也可作動詞，表示“命名；以……名字命名（after）”，例如：They named their son John. 他們給嬰兒取名為約翰。She was named after her grandmother. 她是根據她祖母的名字命名的。
3． on account of：是“因為，為……的緣故”。例如：I was absent from school on account of illness. 另外有關account的詞組還有：on all accounts （無論如何，不管怎樣）；on no accont （不管什么理由，決不）。
4． Louis XVIII：路易十八（1755~1824），法國國王。1795年路易十七死后，自立為路易十八。1814年4月跟隨反法聯軍回到法國，恢復波旁王朝的統治。拿破侖百日王朝時又逃亡到國外。1815年滑鐵盧戰役后再次回到巴黎，重登王位。
5． Praxiteles：普拉克西特利斯（？前四世紀中葉）雅典雕刻家。希臘最有創造性的藝術家之一。以其大理石雕像聞明。其作品將神話人物納如平凡的日常生活而加以抒情描寫，風格柔和細膩，確立了當時希臘雕塑的特征。其著名作品現僅存大理石雕像《赫爾墨斯》。
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