Notre Dame Cathedral burned in a fire earlier this year. CFP
It’s been a rough year for priceless artifacts around the world. In September 2018, a fire wiped out about 90 percent of the collection at the National Museum of Brazil. In April 2019, Paris’ Notre Dame Cathedral lost its famous spire in another fire. Most recently, in October, Japan’s 500-year-old Shuri Castle was destroyed － again, by fire.
对于全球的珍贵文物而言，过去的一年并不容易。2018年9月，一场大火吞噬了巴西国家博物馆90%的藏品。2019年4月，又一场大火烧毁了巴黎圣母院著名的尖塔。在刚刚过去的10月，拥有500年历史的日本首里城再次毁于一场大火。
It’s heartbreaking to see even one piece of human history go up in smoke, but there is no need to be depressed. The truth is that we have lost historic sites and artifacts throughout history, to wars and natural disasters. Many are rebuilt or repaired.
尽管哪怕是仅仅一段人类历史烧为灰烬都让人无比心碎，但无需沮丧。其实，由于战乱及自然灾害，我们失去了不少历史遗迹与文物。许多都是后来重建或者修复的。
Examples include the 18th-century Dresden Frauenkirche in Germany, which was destroyed during the World War II bombing and rebuilt in 2005. There is also the Yellow Crane Tower in Wuhan, China, which dated back to AD 223. It’s been destroyed by fires and wars and rebuilt as many as 11 times.
比如，建于18世纪的德国德累斯顿圣母教堂在二战期间毁于战火，后于2005年重建。还有位于武汉的黄鹤楼，其历史可追溯至公元223年。它曾多次被毁于火灾及战乱，重建次数达11次之多。
So it will probably be no different for the National Museum of Brazil, Notre Dame Cathedral, or Shuri Castle. In fact, right after the fire at Notre Dame, French President Emmanuel Macron vowed that it would be rebuilt in five years. During his visit to China in November, it was decided that Chinese experts will participate in the restoration work.
或许巴西国家博物馆、巴黎圣母院以及首里城都将是如此。事实上，巴黎圣母院大火后不久，法国总统马克龙便承诺将在五年内进行重建。今年11月，马克龙访华期间还宣布，中国专家将参与巴黎圣母院修复工作。
That said, however, there are less fortunate cultural relics － those endangered in Syria and Iraq where wars are ongoing. According to Artnet News, all six UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Syria have been reported damaged. And yet, somehow, they didn’t get nearly as much attention as Notre Dame, and probably won’t have a chance to be restored to their former glory any time soon.
但有的文化遗产就不是那么幸运了 —— 想想那些身处叙利亚以及伊拉克战火中的濒危遗迹。据“艺术网新闻”网站报道，位于叙利亚的6处联合国教科文组织世界遗产都遭到破坏。但它们并未获得类似于巴黎圣母院那样的关注，或许短期内也不会有机会恢复原貌。
It might be true that many damaged artifacts make it back. But “many” is not “all”.
或许，许多受损文物能被修复重现于世。但也仅是“许多”，而非“全部”。
