1700年前罗马遗址出土的臭鸡蛋散发出恶臭

A Roman chicken has managed to offend the nostrils of a team of archaeologists in Buckinghamshire, England, after the eggs it laid 1,700 years ago cracked. Having spent much of ancient history rotting, the out-of-date eggs released what has been described as a “potent stench”, although on the plus side, they do make for fascinating relics.

英国白金汉郡的一队考古学家日前在白金汉郡发现了一只“罗马鸡”，这只鸡在1700年前产下的鸡蛋竟然出现了裂缝。古代史上的大部分时间都在腐烂，过期的鸡蛋散发出一种“强烈的恶臭”，尽管从好的方面来说，它们确实是令人着迷的遗迹。

Researchers carried out excavations at the site at Berryfields between 2007 and 2016, with the most interesting discoveries being found in a pit that had been dug by the side of a Roman road. Because the hole breached the water-table, much of it was waterlogged, and many of its submerged contents have remained remarkably well preserved.

研究人员于2007年至2016年间在Berryfields进行了发掘，最有趣的发现是在罗马路边挖的一个坑里发现的。因为这个洞突破了地下水位，很多地方都浸满了水，很多水下的东西保存得非常好。

Dig project manager Stuart Foreman explained that “in a pit that has been waterlogged for thousands of years you get things that would never survive in a dry environment,” The Independent reports.

据《独立报》报道，挖掘项目经理斯图尔特·福尔曼(Stuart Foreman)解释说，“在一个已经被水浸了几千年的坑里，你得到的东西在干燥的环境里根本无法生存。”

In addition to objects such as leather shoes and a wooden basket, the team also discovered four chicken eggs. Unfortunately, three of the extremely fragile eggs broke while being retrieved from the pit, releasing a stink that had spent the past 1,700 years brewing.

除了皮鞋和木篮子等物品外，研究小组还发现了四个鸡蛋。不幸的是，三个极其脆弱的鸡蛋在从坑里捞出来的时候摔碎了，散发出一股1700年来一直在酝酿的臭味。

According to Oxford Archaeology, who conducted the dig, the pit was originally used for malting grain and brewing beer, but by the end of the third century had become something of a wishing well, where locals would throw offerings to the gods.

据主持此次挖掘的牛津考古学家称，这个坑最初是用来酿造谷物和啤酒的，但到了三世纪末，它已经变成了许愿井，当地人会在那里向神灵供奉祭品。

These days, only an idiot would lob a bunch of eggs into a wishing well, but in Roman times eggs were imbued with all sorts of symbolic meanings, being associated with the gods Mithras and Mercury while also carrying connotations of rebirth and fertility.

如今，只有傻瓜才会往许愿井里扔一堆鸡蛋，但在罗马时代，鸡蛋被赋予了各种各样的象征意义，与密特拉和墨丘利有关，同时也承载着重生和生育的寓意。

Because of this, eggshells have previously been found in Roman graves, and its likely that the four eggs found at Berryfields were intended as some sort of gift for the gods.

正因为如此，以前在罗马人的坟墓里发现过蛋壳，而在贝里菲尔德发现的四枚蛋很可能是上帝的礼物。

Luckily, one of the eggs was retrieved fully intact and will soon go on display at the Buckinghamshire County Museum.

幸运的是，其中一个完整的蛋被找回来了，很快将在白金汉郡博物馆展出。