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It's an expression of elegance and power.
它表达的是优雅与权力
But most intriguing is her crown.
但最复杂的部分是她的王冠
It's a row of tiny bearded faces,
王冠上是一排小小的蓄着胡须的脸
symbolising the seafaring Portuguese.
代表着航海的葡萄牙人
They were said to be messengers of Benin's water god Olokun,
他们据说是贝宁大海女神的信使
so their images reinforced the authority of the Queen.
所以他们的形象强调了女王的权力
Trade with the Portuguese meant that the kingdom of Benin,
和葡萄牙人贸易充分表明
like a number of African societies,
贝宁王国和其他非洲社会一样
was drawn into a new Atlantic world.
加入了新大西洋世界
African traders loaded locally produced goods
非洲商人用本地产品
onto European ships that sailed up African rivers.
填满往来于非洲河流的欧洲船只
They traded in cloth and in pepper, in gold and ivory,
他们买卖布料 胡椒 黄金和象牙
and also in slaves, though at this point, in very small numbers.
也买卖奴隶 虽然在那时数目很少
But Africans also exported the work of African artists,
但非洲人也出口非洲艺术家们的作品
who found new customers in Europe.
这些艺术家在欧洲找到了新的顾客
The craftsmen of Benin carved elaborate salt cellars from ivory,
贝宁匠人用象牙雕刻精致的盐碟
in the process creating a new Afro-Portuguese style.
那时他们正创造一种新的非洲葡萄牙风格
With their Christian crosses and distinctive clothes,
这些人像有基督教的十字架和特色衣服
these figures are unmistakably 16th-century Europeans.
无疑刻画的就是十六世纪的欧洲人
The lid is crowned with a tiny Portuguese sailing ship,
盖子上是一搜小葡萄牙帆船
topped with a crow's nest.
顶端装饰着一个乌鸦的巢穴
As a witty flourish, we see a sailor peeping out.
有趣的是 还有一位水手探出头来
These luxury items were all destined
这些贵重物品都运往了
for Portugal's great port city - Lisbon.
葡萄牙最大的港口城市 里斯本
By the late 1400s, contact with the world beyond Europe
到十五世纪后半叶 葡萄牙和外面世界的接触
was transforming the way the Portuguese saw themselves...
使得葡萄牙人看待自己的方式改变了
As more inquisitive and more outward-looking.
他们更加富有好奇心 更加开放
The fortified tower of Belem, built to protect Lisbon harbour,
贝伦塔的建造是为了保卫里斯本港口
boasted ornate braided details
拥有编织状的装饰细节
thought by some to be influenced by African carvings,
有人认为这种装饰就是受到非洲雕刻的影响
like the ivory salt-cellar ship.
就如那艘象牙盐碟的帆船
