雙語文摘：London's Big Ben clocks up 150 years

Big Ben, one of London's most familiar landmarks, seen here in March 2009, celebrates the 150th anniversary of its first chiming on Saturday.


雙語文摘：London's Big Ben clocks up 150 years 英國大本鍾150歲啦！(ZT)

London's Big Ben celebrates the 150th anniversary of its first chiming on Saturday.

The Great Bell, housed in Saint Stephen's Tower which adjoins the House of Commons, first struck the hour on July 11, 1859, and has been interrupted only occasionally for maintenance and bad weather ever since.

To mark the anniversary, the message "Happy Birthday Big Ben, 150 years, 1859 - 2009" will be projected on the tower.

These days, the name Big Ben is frequently used to describe the tower, one of the capital's most photographed sites, but the nickname was first given to the bell alone.

The origin of the name is thought to come from Sir Benjamin Hall, the First Commissioner of Works and Public Buildings, whose name is inscribed on the bell.

Mike McCann, Keeper of the Great Clock, said: "After 150 years, Big Ben still holds a special place in the hearts of Londoners and the world as a magnificent example of engineering and building genius."

The 96-metre (315-foot) high tower which houses the clock was built as part of the rebuilding of the Houses of Parliament by architects Charles Barry and Augustus Pugin following a major fire in 1843.

倫敦大本鍾於上周六迎來了它首次報時以來的第150個生日。

大本鍾坐落在英國國會下議院所在地附近的聖斯蒂芬鍾樓上。自1859年7月11日首次報時以來，大本鍾僅在維修或天氣惡劣時才偶爾暫停運轉。

為了紀念大本鍾的生日，“大本鍾150歲生日快樂！1859年－2009年”的字樣將通過投影顯示在鍾樓上。

如今，大本鍾這個名字常用來指整個鍾樓，這裏也是倫敦曝光率最高的景點之一，其實最初這個昵稱隻是給鍾本身起的名字。

據稱，大本鍾這個名字是由英國前任勞工和建築首席專員本傑明8226;霍爾爵士起的，他的名字就刻在大本鍾上。

守鍾人邁克8226;麥卡恩說：“大本鍾已經150歲了，但它作為機械和建築傑作的典範，仍然在倫敦和世界人民心中占據著特殊的地位。”

在1843年的一場大火之後，作為重建英國國會大廈的一部分，建築師查理斯8226;巴雷和奧古斯塔斯8226;帕金共同設計了這座96米（合315英尺）高的鍾樓，而大本鍾就在鍾樓之上。

Vocabulary:

project：to throw or cause to fall upon a surface or into space, as a ray of light or a shadow.（投影）

inscribe：to write, print, mark, or engrave (words, characters, etc.)（雕刻，銘記）