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文艺板块
Thomas Becket at the British Museum
在大英博物馆展出的"托马斯·贝克特"
Murder in the cathedral
大教堂谋杀案
An infamous medieval assassination echoes down the centuries
一场臭名昭著的中世纪刺杀事件流传了几个世纪
It could have been a scene from “The Sopranos”, only the irascible capo was King Henry II of England. The irksome upstart who had to be neutralised was Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury. “Will no one rid me of this troublesome priest?” Henry snapped in 1170, or words to that effect. His oblique command was to become a proverbial case of gangsterism dressed in plausible deniability.
这可能是《黑道家族》中的一幕，只是英国国王亨利二世在其中担当了“黑帮头目”的角色。被迫保持中立的坎特伯雷大主教托马斯·贝克特是一个令人讨厌的新贵。1170年，亨利二世怒气冲冲地说着：“难道没有人能让我摆脱这个麻烦的牧师吗？”，或者诸如类似的话。亨利二世通过拐弯抹角的命令让自己合理地置身事外，并打造出了一场众所周知的犯罪案件。
The shocking murder that resulted is at the heart of a new exhibition at the British Museum, its first to open since the pandemic struck last year. A replica altar occupies an otherwise empty space. Menacing music accompanies an audiovisual re-enactment. Four knights who take up Henry’s hint (or challenge) seem to cast long shadows on the walls; monks chant dolefully in Latin; a bell tolls. And the blood of the king’s erstwhile friend and lord chancellor splatters the wall like poppy petals.
这起骇人听闻的谋杀案是大英博物馆新展览的核心，此次是大英博物馆自去年新冠疫情以来首次开放展览。一个复制祭坛占据了一片空地。阴森恐怖的音乐伴奏塑造了视听再现。领会亨利二世暗示（或挑战）的四个骑士似乎在墙上投下长长的阴影；僧侣用拉丁语悲伤地吟唱；丧钟敲响。国王昔日的朋友兼大法官的鲜血洒在墙上，就像罂粟花一样。
As the many eyewitness accounts attest, the reality was far ghastlier—heavy medieval armour clanging against the cold flagstones of Canterbury Cathedral as the crowd shrank back, the shouts of a cornered man, a sword-swipe that sliced off the top of Becket’s head as if it were a boiled egg. Later, when the monks finally undressed the corpse, beneath his fine vestments he was found to have worn a hair shirt crawling with vermin. After spending six years in exile in France Becket had returned to England, not just to speak truth to power and defend the church’s privileges against the monarchy’s encroachments, but to offer his life up to God.
正如许多目击者的描述所证明的那样，现实要可怕得多——沉重的中世纪盔甲在坎特伯雷大教堂冰冷的石板路上叮当作响，人群向后退去，伴随贝克特这个被逼得走投无路的人的喊叫声，一把剑从他的头顶砍下，就仿佛那是一个煮蛋。后来，在僧侣们最终解开这具尸体的衣服之时，他们发现贝克特精致的法衣下穿着一件长满虱蚤的苦衣。贝克特在流亡法国六年之后回到了英国，他不仅敢于对当权者说真话，捍卫教权，反抗王权，而且还向上帝献出了自己的生命。
译文由可可原创，仅供学习交流使用，未经许可请勿转载。
