魅力無限的世界十大古都(組圖)

底比斯

　　7.Thebes

　　Most people think of Cairoand the Great Pyramids when they think of ancient Egypt, but the heartbeatof the magical pharaonicdynasties actually beat much further up the Nile at Thebes. Thebes was the ruling capital of ancient Egypt during its most dominant eras, beginning with the Old Kingdom 4500 years ago, and is home to two of its most revered temples at Karnak and Luxor. Most of Egypt's holy rulers are also buried nearby in the famous Valley of the Kings。

　　底比斯

　　大部分人提到古埃及時就會想起開羅和金字塔，但在古埃及更為有名的還數(shù)都城底比斯。從4500年前的埃及古王國開始時，底比斯就被古埃及大多數(shù)重要的朝代定為首都。這里有令人敬畏的卡爾奈克和盧克斯特神殿，附近的國王谷是古埃及大多數(shù)統(tǒng)治者的安葬地。

大津巴布韋

　　8.Great Zimbabwe

　　At 1,800 acres in breadth and the only one of its kind in Africa, the complex of Great Zimbabwe confounded early European colonialists, who couldn't believe that sub-Saharanpeoples were capable of its creation. They were, in fact, and built the complicated structures sometime after 1200 AD, when a wide-reaching empire of about 20,000 Shona cattlemen ruled the area。

　　大津巴布韋

　　占地1800英畝的大津巴布韋曾是非洲獨一無二的都城。早期歐洲殖民主義者見到它后大吃一驚，他們不相信撒哈拉沙漠以南的人民有能力建成如此先進的城市，但這是事實。在公元1200年后，有2萬人口的修納人王國占領該地后建造了這種都城。

西安

　　9.Xi'an

　　The Chinese city of Xi'an was the central strongholdfor all of the country’s most important ancient dynasties going back 3,000 years. Tourists flocking to see the city’s Terra CottaArmy, 6,000 unique and life-size statues buried to protect the tomb of the great Zhou emperor Qin Shi Huang, has made Xi'an famous in modern times. That will only multiply when the emperor's sprawling mausoleum, rumored to hold invaluable treasures and rivers of mercury, is finally opened by archaeologists。

　　西安

　　3000年前，長安是中國最重要的古代王朝的核心要塞。秦始皇陵中埋藏著多達6000種世界上獨一無二的與真人一般大小的兵馬俑讓如今的西安蜚聲世界。據(jù)猜測，秦始皇的墓中除了埋藏著無價之寶外，還有用水銀做成的江河。

　　10.Cahokia

　　With upwards of 30,000 inhabitants at its peak in about 1100 AD， Cahokia, Illinois remained North America’s first and biggest real city until the Northeast's population exploded in the late 18th century. This urban center of the Mississippiculture had organized leadership, commerce and a penchant for mound-building. Monk's Mound, the largest at 100 feet tall, dominates the site and was probably a mighty foundation for the home of the resident spiritualleader。

　　卡霍基亞

　　在公元1100年左右，美國伊利諾斯州的卡霍基亞都城居民一度達到了3萬人。在18世紀末北美東北部人口大爆炸前，卡霍基亞一直是北美地區(qū)第一座、最大的真正意義上的城市。這座密西西比河流域的文化中心曾經(jīng)出現(xiàn)過井然有序的社會、繁榮的商業(yè)并修建堤壩。其中的僧侶堤壩高100英尺，在城中居高臨下，它很可能曾被掌權者用來作為建造居所的地基。