本篇文章共分 8 段，從玉石與青銅器在中國歷史的出現開始，說明這兩種器物在原料、製作、使用環境、象徵意義，以及與宗教、政治的關聯，最後並說明宋代晚期開始的藝術收藏的源起。

本篇考題英文原文與對應之中文翻譯整理如下。練習作答解題時若有對語意不清楚之處，請仔細查閱對照，以提升閱讀理解能力。

The Use of Jade and Bronze in China 玉石和青銅在中國的使用

1. 玉石與青銅

   Jade and bronze were chosen early in China’s history as the materials for society’s most precious objects. The main reason for this is very straightforward. Both materials are beautiful to the eye and, in the case of jade, also to the touch. Jade is a dense stone that can be ground to smooth, soft surfaces and glows in subtle greens, grays, and browns. Bronze, an alloy of tin and copper, is a light, bright gold color when polished.

   在中國歷史的早期，玉和青銅被選為社會上最珍貴物品的材料。其主要原因非常簡單。這兩種材料都很美觀，對於玉石來說，觸感也很好。玉石是一種緻密的石頭，可以磨成光滑、柔軟的表面，並發出微妙的綠色、灰色和棕色。青銅是錫和銅的合金，拋光後呈淺色、亮金色。

2. 用於特殊儀式

   Jade was employed (c. 4500 B.C.) for exceptionally elegant versions of utilitarian stone tools; bronze was the choice (c. 1650 B.C.) for the highest-quality cooking pots. Made in jade, the tools were not for daily use but for displays of status and power, and the bronze cooking pots were not for ordinary meals but were reserved for offerings of food and wine to ancestors. Jade and bronze were thus used for special ritual or ceremonial versions of standard everyday items.

   玉石被用於製作特別優雅的實用石器（約公元前 4500 年）；青銅被用於製作最高品質的炊具（約公元前 1650 年）。用玉石製作的工具不是用於日常使用，而是用於顯示地位和權力，而青銅炊具不是用於普通飲食，而是用於向祖先供奉食物和酒。因此，玉石和青銅被用於特殊的儀式或標準日常用品的禮儀版本。

3. 材料與加工

   The materials themselves were scarcer and required more labor to work than ordinary stone and ceramic. That this was the case must have been as clear in the past as it is today and must have marked the objects as in some way exceptional. Not only the materials but also the ways in which they were worked demonstrated their exalted functions Jade scepters (ceremonial objects of various shapes that were carried by influential people as symbols of authority) were ground more thinly than the stone tools they copied, such as axes or reaping knives. Had they been used to chop down a tree, they would have broken. Bronze cooking pots were made in intricate forms, with extra knobs and handles and dense decoration all of which would have been impracticable on everyday ceramics.

   與普通的石頭和陶瓷相比，這些材料本身更稀缺，加工時需要更多的辛勞。這種情況在過去一定和今天一樣明顯，而且一定象徵著這些物品在某種程度上是特殊的。不僅是材料，而且它們的加工方式也顯示了其崇高的功能。玉杖（有影響力的人攜帶的各種形狀的儀式物品，作為權力的象徵）比它們模仿的石器，如斧頭或收割刀，磨得更薄。如果它們被用來砍樹，它們就會折斷。青銅鍋的形狀複雜，有額外的旋鈕、把手和密集的裝飾，所有這些在日常陶瓷上都是不實際的。

4. 工藝特色

   There would be no point in using these scarce and labor-intensive materials in place of common ones if they could not be immediately recognized as outstanding. Craftsmanship was therefore directed toward exploiting and displaying the particular qualities of jade and bronze that make them recognizably different from ordinary stone and ceramic. These qualities had to be made visually noticeable. Other qualities, such as weight or texture, can only be appreciated by holding the object, and fewer people will have the opportunity to pick it up and feel its features with their hands than will be able to glance at it quickly.

   如果這些稀缺的勞動密集型材料不能被立即識別為傑出的材料，那麼使用這些材料代替普通材料就沒有意義。因此，手工藝的方向是開發和展示玉石和青銅的特殊性質，使它們與普通的石頭和陶瓷有明顯的區別。這些性質必須在視覺上為人所注意。其他的性質，如重量或質地，只能通過握有該物品來欣賞，而有機會拿起它並用手感受其特徵的人比能夠快速瞥一眼的人要少。

5. 與普通物件的區別

   Visual distinctions deployed to separate the ceremonial from the everyday can also be used to refer to smaller differences in the ranking of ritual items, separating those owned by kings from those owned by nobles. Such differences can be in size or mass—one piece being larger or thicker than another—or in skill, with one being better crafted than another. We make such judgments when looking at ancient objects today, and it seems likely that some sort of similar assessment was made at the time.

   用來區分儀式和日常用品的視覺區別也可以用來顯示儀式物品等級的較小差異，將皇帝擁有的物品和貴族擁有的物品區分開來。這種差異可以是尺寸或質量上的差異—一件物品比另一件大或厚—或者是製作技能上的差異，亦即一件物品比另一件製作得更精良。今天我們在看古代物品時也會做出這樣的判斷，看來當時也有可能做出某種類似的評估。

6. 象徵宗教與政治

   Two hierarchies, both visible to the eye, were thus achieved. First and most fundamental was a hierarchy of function, the ritual object standing above the everyday object. Second was the hierarchy within each category, with the more elaborately worked and often larger object higher up the scale. The rich and powerful owned the jade scepters and bronze vessels. What is more, these scepters and vessels not only expressed or reflected the status of their owners but they also probably reinforced it. In this way, jades and bronzes became bound up with the religious and political structures of the early Chinese state, and they remained so linked up to the twentieth century.

   這樣就實現了兩個等級，都是肉眼可見的。首先，也是最基本的是功能的等級，儀式性的物品站在日常物品之上。其次是每個類別中的等級制度，做工更精細、通常更大的物品的等級更高。富人和有權勢的人擁有玉杖和青銅器。更重要的是，這些權杖和器皿不僅表達或反映了其主人的地位，而且還可能加強了其地位。這樣一來，玉器和青銅器就與早期中國國家的宗教和政治結構聯繫在一起，直到二十世紀，它們仍然如此。

7. 宣揚權威

   It is therefore not surprising that at times when rulers and their courts wished to assert their authority, they commissioned large numbers of conspicuous bronzes. Further, when they wished to distract attention from weaknesses in society, they emphasized their power even more by increasing expenditure on ritual objects. Thus, changes in the aesthetic qualities of jades and bronzes can inform us about the society that produced them.

   因此，當統治者和他們的宮廷希望宣揚其權威時，他們委託製作大量顯眼的青銅器就不足為奇了。此外，當他們希望轉移人們對社會弱點的注意力時，他們會通過增加對儀式物品的支出來強調他們的權力。因此，玉器和青銅器的審美質量的變化可以讓我們瞭解生產它們的社會。

8. 藝術收藏

   Later generations of Chinese scholars of the Song Dynasty (A.D. 960-1279) quickly recognized the link between the bronzes and jades and political power. In their search for political legitimacy, they collected and studied ancient artifacts, pursuits that in themselves reinforced the high status of jade and bronze in society. From the idea that political power resided in ancient objects, including calligraphy and painting, grew the first art collections.

   宋代（公元 960-1279 年）的後期中國學者很快認識到青銅器和玉器與政治權力之間的聯繫。在尋求政治合法性的過程中，他們收集和研究古代文物，這些愛好本身就加強了玉器和青銅器在社會中的崇高地位。從政治權力存在於古代物品（包括書法和繪畫）的想法中，發展出了第一批藝術收藏。