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Unit 1 Cultural relicsWarming Up 1. Do you know what a cultural relic is?2. Does a cultural relic always have to be rare and valuable? Is it enough to have survived for a long time?3. Are cultural relics only objects like vases or can they be buildings too? Look at the pictures below and discuss what they are and whether they are cultural relics or not.Ming Dynasty vase Taj Mahal ivory dragon boat Mogao CavesPre-reading1. Have you ever seen a piece of amber? What do you know about it?2. Look at the title and the picture of the reading passage and predict what it is about. Then skim it quickly and see if you were right.ReadingIN SEARCH OF THE AMBER ROOMFrederick William I, the King of Prussia, could never have imagined that his greatest gift to the Russian people would have such an amazing history. This gift was the Amber Room, which was given this name because several tons of amber were used to make it. The amber which was selected had a beautiful yellow-brown colour like honey. The design of the room was in the fancy style popular in those days. It was also a treasure decorated with gold and jewels, which took the countrys best artists about ten years to make.In fact, the room was not made to be a gift. It was designed for the palace of Frederick I. However, the next King of Prussia, Frederick William I, to whom the amber room belonged, decided not to keep it. In 1716 he gave it to Peter the Great. In return, the Czar sent him a troop of his best soldiers. So the Amber Room became part of the Czars winter palace in St Petersburg. About four metres long, the room served as a small reception hall for important visitors.Later, Catherine II had the Amber Room moved to a palace outside St Petersburg where she spent her summers. She told her artists to add more details to it. In 1770 the room was completed the way she wanted. Almost six hundred candles lit the room, and its mirrors and pictures shone like gold. Sadly, although the Amber Room was considered one of the wonders of the world, it is now missing.In September 1941, the Nazi army was near St Petersburg. This was a time when the two countries were at war. Before the Nazis could get to the summer palace, the Russians were able to remove some furniture and small art objects from the Amber Room. However, some of the Nazis secretly stole the room itself. In less than two days 100,000 pieces were put inside twenty-seven wooden boxes. There is no doubt that the boxes were then put on a train for Konigsberg, which was at that time a German city on the Baltic Sea. After that, what happened to the Amber Room remains a mystery.Recently, the Russians and Germans have built a new Amber Room at the summer palace. By studying old photos of the former Amber Room, they have made the new one look like the old one. In 2003 it was ready for the people of St Petersburg when they celebrated the 300th birthday of their city.Comprehending1. Join the correct parts of the sentences together. Frederick I A. stole the Amber Room. Frederick William I B. sent a troop of his best soldiers to the King of Prussia. Peter the Great C. had the Amber Room made. Catherine D. had it moved outside St Petersburg. The Nazi army E. gave it to the Czar as a gift. The Russians and Germans F. built a new Amber Room after studying pictures of the old one.2. The following five questions summarize the main idea of the five paragraphs in the passage. Put the paragraph numbers in the boxes. Then answer the questions. How did the Amber Room become one of the wonders of the world? How was a new Amber Room built? How did the Amber Room get lost? How was the Amber Room made? Why did the Kong of Prussia give the Amber Room to the Czar of Russia as a gift?3. In groups discuss: Is it worth rebuilding lost cultural relics such as the Amber Room or Yuan Ming Yuan in Beijing? Give your reasons.
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