世界著名古都

Babylon巴比倫

Famous for its “wondrous” hanging gardens， the ancient Mesopotamian city of Babylon had as turbulent a history as its location in present-day Iraq suggests. Everyone from the ancient Assyrians to Alexander the Great wanted to get their hands on this strategic location， and it would become the capital for many ruling groups over a period of several thousand years. King Nebuchadnezzar II， creator of the gardens， led the city during its splendid architectural heyday around 600 BC.

巴比倫這座古代美索不達(dá)米亞人的城市位于今天的伊拉克境內(nèi)，它以其令人驚嘆的空中花園而世界聞名，有著這個(gè)地方令人想起的一樣的騷亂歷史。從古亞述人到亞歷山大大帝都要控制這一重要的戰(zhàn)略要地。數(shù)千年來，它也一直被眾多統(tǒng)治者定為首都。大約公元前600年，古巴比倫國王尼布甲尼撒二世領(lǐng)導(dǎo)這個(gè)城市，在其輝煌建筑的全盛時(shí)期建造了空中花園。

Cuzco庫斯科

All roads in the Incan empire once lead to Cuzco， bustling capital in the Andes Mountains until its discovery by European explorers in 1532. To retreat from the big city， Incan kings would head to their summer home of Machu Picchu further up in the mountains.

庫斯科位于秘魯安第斯山脈。在印加帝國時(shí)期，所有的道路都可以通向這里，它曾是印加帝國的君主在夏季的避暑勝地。1532年，歐洲探險(xiǎn)者發(fā)現(xiàn)了它。

Rome 古羅

It’simpossible to stroll through modern Rome and not bump into reminders ofits ancient past. The Forum， the Colosseum and the Pantheon， just to name a few， are lasting testaments to the capital of an empire once made up of 2.5 million square miles， three continents and about 100 million people. The empire reached its zenith in 117 AD， when the emperor Trajan ruled from Rome and months-long gladiator games were held to celebrate the city’s glory.

即便徜徉在現(xiàn)代的羅馬城里，你也不會(huì)不碰到它的古代遺跡。古羅馬廣場、圓形大劇場和萬神殿都是古羅馬曾經(jīng)風(fēng)光無限的持久證據(jù)。這座城曾是一個(gè)疆域250萬平方英里，橫跨歐、亞、非三大洲，人口1億的帝國（羅馬帝國）的首都。公元117年羅馬帝國達(dá)到極盛，當(dāng)時(shí)圖雷真在位，坐鎮(zhèn)羅馬，為了慶祝帝國的輝煌曾舉行為長達(dá)數(shù)月的劍客斗劍比賽。

Tenochtitlan特諾奇蒂特蘭

Legend and pieces of historical facts indicate that Tenochtitlan was once the world’s biggest and most beautiful city. The capital of the great Aztec empire， which eventually morphed into today’s Mexico City， had about 300，000 inhabitants when Spanish conquistadors arrived in 1521. Despite being built atop a lake according to the wishes of an important Aztec deity， ancient engineers made Tenochtitlan as efficient as any city in Europe with a complex system of cause ways and canals

.各種傳說和歷史資料都表明特諾奇蒂特蘭曾是世界上最大、最美麗的城市。特諾奇蒂特蘭在歷史上曾是偉大的阿茲臺(tái)克帝國的首都（最終演變成現(xiàn)在的墨西哥城）。1521年西班牙征服者到達(dá)該地時(shí)，這里曾有大約30萬居民。盡管傳說特諾奇蒂特蘭建于一座湖泊之上是根據(jù)一位重要的阿茲臺(tái)克神靈的愿望，古代建筑師為該城建造的復(fù)雜的堤道和排水系統(tǒng)讓它和歐洲任何一座先進(jìn)的城市媲美。

Thebes底比斯

Most people think of Cairo and the Great Pyramids when they think of ancient Egypt， but the heartbeat of the magical pharaonic dynasties 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.

大部分人想到古埃及時(shí)就會(huì)想起開羅和大金字塔，但是神秘的法老王朝的中心實(shí)際上要沿著尼羅河溯流而上到底比斯。從4500年前的埃及古王國開始時(shí)，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。

Great Zimbabwe大津巴布韋

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-Saharan peoples 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.

占地1800英畝的大津巴布韋曾是非洲獨(dú)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各民族有能力建成如此先進(jìn)的城市，但這是事實(shí)。在公元1200年后，有2萬人口的修納人王國占領(lǐng)該地后建造了這種都城。

Athens雅典

Democracy， math， philosophy， the Olympics…what didn’t come out of Athens， the ethereal capital of ancient Greece？ Athens fought long and hard， in conflicts on the sea and on land， to become leader of all Aegean city-states by the early 5th century BC. It celebrated its victories by building great temples like the Parthenon， the iconic symbol of art and architecture in ancient Greece. A plague — likely typhoid fever — contributed to the empire’s fall.

民主政治、數(shù)學(xué)、哲學(xué)、奧林匹克運(yùn)動(dòng)會(huì)……還有什么輝煌成就不是出自古希臘首都雅典的呢？公元前5世紀(jì)，雅典經(jīng)過海洋和陸地長期艱苦的征戰(zhàn)成為愛琴海所有城市國家的霸主。為慶祝勝利，雅典修建了古希臘藝術(shù)和建筑的風(fēng)格記錄帕臺(tái)農(nóng)等偉大的神廟。一場瘟疫——很可能是傷寒——促使了這個(gè)帝國衰落。