The Museum of London is starting to unearth what might turn out to be as many as 3,000 human skeletons(遗骸) under a train station in the United Kingdom’s capital. The bones were exposed when workers began building a new entrance to a train station in London, England.
As the first city burial(埋葬) ground in London, Bedlam was probably used between 1569 and 1738. Its name comes from the nearby Hospital of Saint Mary of Bethlehem, which people also called Bedlam. Often, the people buried in Bedlam could not afford to be buried anywhere else. The burial ground also served as an overflow cemetery(墓地). That means that if other cemeteries became full, a person would be buried in Bedlam instead. It is believed that there could be a total of 20,000 skeletons in the overall burial ground.
Experts think studying the skeletons may help them learn about London’s past, including questions about the Black Death, a deadly disease that had a terrible influence on much of the world. It started in the mid-1300s and swept through Asia, Africa, and Europe. Historians believe almost 50 million people died of the disease, including many of those buried at Bedlam. “Sixteen sixty-five saw the very last recorded period of the disease,” says Jay Carver, the leading expert on the project. Carver and his team believe the Bedlam bodies may explain why the outbreak suddenly stopped.
The dig site also sits above an even older Roman(古罗马的) road (between the 2nd and 3rd century A. D. ). Archaeologists(考古学家) have already found a large number of objects from Roman times, including horseshoes and urns. Nick Elsden, the project manager for the site, says, “This is the UK’s largest archeology project, in what is one of the oldest areas of the city, so we stand to learn a great deal.”
12. The underlined word “exposed” in Paragraph I probably means “________”.
A.studied | B.found |
C.returned | D.searched |
13. We can learn from the text that Bedlam ________.
A.served as a cemetery for poor people | B.used to be a train station |
C.got its name thanks to Jay Carver | D.was once taken up by Germen |
14. What kind of emotion was expressed in Nick Elsden’s words?
A.Sadness. | B.Anger. |
C.Regret. | D.Expectation. |
15. What would be the best title for the text?
A.History of the Black Death | B.Skeleton secrets in London |
C.The Museum of London | D.A Roman road in Bedlam |