研究发现蒙娜丽莎有毒

近日，研究人员利用X射线衍射和红外光谱成像等技术对达·芬奇的名作《蒙娜丽莎》进行了深入分析，发现画作中含有有毒的颜料混合物。

🤔️小作业：

1. What is implied about Leonardo da Vinci's versatility?

a) He was known only for his painting techniques.

b) He had a narrow focus on art and ignored other fields.

c) He achieved greatness in diverse domains beyond art.

d) His contribution to chemistry overshadowed his artistry.

a) To increase the toxicity of the painting

b) To quicken the drying process of the oil paints

c) To color the paint white

d) To add weight to the painting

无注释原文：

The Mona Lisa Reveals a Toxic Secret Hidden Inside The Painting

From: ScienceAlert

Leonardo da Vinci is well known for having used less conventional painting methods and substances in his work, and we're still making new discoveries about them – the latest being a mix of toxic pigments underlying the brushwork on the Mona Lisa.

Researchers from France and the UK looked at a tiny microsample taken from a hidden corner of the Mona Lisa, deploying a variety of X-ray diffraction and infrared spectroscopy imaging techniques to identify the substances used.

The team found not only oil and lead white – as expected – but also the rare compound plumbonacrite. Plumbonacrite is formed when oil and lead(II) oxide (or PbO) react together, suggesting the latter compound was used by da Vinci.

"Leonardo probably endeavored to prepare a thick paint suitable for covering the wooden panel of the Mona Lisa by treating the oil with a high load of lead(II) oxide, PbO," write the researchers in their published paper.

The same PbO compound was found in several microsamples taken from the surface of The Last Supper, another famous painting from da Vinci. However, the only references to PbO in the Italian artist's writings were related to skin and hair remedies.

Even though it's not included in his writings, it nevertheless seems that da Vinci made use of this lead(II) oxide as a ground layer. It's something that's been hypothesized about before, but now we have more direct evidence of it.

It's thought that the lead(II) oxide power would've been heated and dissolved in linseed or nut oil by da Vinci, producing a mixture that's thicker and faster drying than traditional oil paints – a recipe that then went on to be used by other artists.

The same plumbonacrite substance has also been discovered in The Night Watch painting by Rembrandt, created in 1642 – almost a century and a half after the Mona Lisa. That suggests the Dutch master used a similar technique to da Vinci.

This discovery is another example of how modern-day analysis techniques are opening up new findings about historical artifacts. Advanced 3D rendering has previously been used to help study another da Vinci painting, Salvator Mundi.

It's also testament to the constant inventiveness of Leonardo da Vinci, a man who achieved greatness not just in his painting, but also in many other fields – including mathematics, chemistry, and engineering.

"He was someone who loved to experiment, and each of his paintings is completely different technically," chemist Victor Gonzalez, from the Institut de Recherche de Chimie Paris in France, told the Associated Press.

The research has been published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society.

- ◆ -

注：完整题目见本文开头；中文文本为机器翻译并非一一对应，仅供参考

含注释全文：

The Mona Lisa Reveals a Toxic Secret Hidden Inside The Painting

From: ScienceAlert

Leonardo da Vinci is well known for having used less conventional painting methods and substances in his work, and we're still making new discoveries about them – the latest being a mix of toxic pigments underlying the brushwork on the Mona Lisa.

列奥纳多·达·芬奇（Leonardo da Vinci）以其在作品中使用非传统的绘画技巧和材料而闻名，而我们对此仍不断有新的发现——最新的发现是《蒙娜丽莎》（Mona Lisa）笔触下的有毒颜料混合物。

表示“传统的；常规的；普通的”，英文解释为“traditional and ordinary”如：conventional behaviour/attitudes/clothes 传统行为/态度/服装。

1）表示“物质；材料”，英文解释为“material with particular physical characteristics”如：an organic/chemical substance 有机/化学物质。

2）表示“重要性；要旨；实质；根据”，英文解释为“importance, seriousness, or relationship to real facts”举个🌰：There is no substance in/to the allegation. 这项指控毫无根据。

mix /mɪks/ 1）表示“混合；结合”，英文解释为“a combination”举个🌰：There was an odd mix of people at the party. 派对上有形形色色的人。

2）表示“（常为粉状的）配料，混合料”，英文解释为“something that is sold in the form of a powder to which a liquid, such as water, can be added later”如：cake/cement mix 蛋糕粉/水泥配料。

toxic /ˈtɒksɪk/ 1）表示“有毒的；引起中毒的”，相当于poisonous，如：toxic waste/chemicals/effluent 有毒的废料/化学品/废水，牛津词典2018年度词汇就是：Toxic.

2）表示“令人极不愉快的；不可接受的”，英文解释为“very unpleasant or unacceptable”。

3）表示“恶毒的；造成阴影的”，英文解释为“causing you a lot of harm and unhappiness over a long period of time”如：a toxic relationship 带毒的友谊。

pigment /ˈpɪɡ.mənt/ 表示“色素；颜料”，英文解释为“a substance that gives something a particular colour when it is present in it or is added to it”举个🌰：Melanin is the dark brown pigment of the hair, skin, and eyes that is present in varying amounts in every human being. 黑色素是头发、皮肤和眼睛中的黑褐色色素，每个人体内或多或少都有这种色素。

brushwork /ˈbrʌʃ.wɜːk/ 表示“画法；画家的风格”，英文解释为“the particular style that an artist has of putting paint onto the painting with a brush”

Researchers from France and the UK looked at a tiny microsample taken from a hidden corner of the Mona Lisa, deploying a variety of X-ray diffraction and infrared spectroscopy imaging techniques to identify the substances used.

来自法国和英国的研究人员从《蒙娜丽莎》画作不显眼的一角采集了微小样本进行研究，运用了各种X射线衍射和红外光谱成像技术来确定所使用的物质。

micro- /ˈmaɪ.krəʊ/ 表示“小的，微小的”，英文解释为“very small”如：a microorganism 微生物。

sample /ˈsɑːm.pəl/ 表示“样品”，英文解释为“a small amount of something that shows you what the rest is or should be like”如：a free sample of shampoo 免费的洗发水小样；或者表示“（用于检验、分析的）样本，试样”，英文解释为“A sample of a substance is a small amount of it that is examined and analysed scientifically.”举个🌰：They took samples of my blood. 他们采了我的血样。

1) 表示“利用，调动（尤指想法、论据等）；有效运用；发挥…的作用”，英文解释为“to use something for a particular purpose, especially ideas, arguments etc”如：a job in which a variety of professional skills will be deployed 要用到多项专业技术的工作。

2) 表示“部署，调度（士兵、军事装备等）”，英文解释为“to organize or move soldiers, military equipment etc so that they are in the right place and ready to be used”如：deploy forces/troops/weapons etc，NATO's decision to deploy cruise missiles 北约要部署巡航导弹的决定。

diffraction /dɪˈfræk.ʃən/ 表示“衍射”，英文解释为“(a pattern caused by) a change in the direction of light, water, or sound waves”

infrared /ˌɪn.frəˈred/ 表示“红外线的”，英文解释为“Infrared light is a type of light that feels warm but cannot be seen.”举个🌰：Their pilots are guided by an infrared optical system that shows images clearly even at night. 他们的飞行员使用红外光学系统导航，即便在夜晚也能清楚地显示影像。

spectroscopy /spekˈtrɒs.kə.pi/ 表示“光谱学”，英文解释为“the study of the way matter absorbs or sends out light and other radiation (= energy from light or heat that you cannot see) ”举个🌰：Scientists have determined the proportions of the chemical elements present in the Sun using spectroscopy. 科学家们利用光谱学测定了太阳中存在的化学元素的比例。

The team found not only oil and lead white – as expected – but also the rare compound plumbonacrite. Plumbonacrite is formed when oil and lead(II) oxide (or PbO) react together, suggesting the latter compound was used by da Vinci.

研究团队不仅发现了预期中的油和铅白，还发现了罕见的含铅化合物plumbonacrite (Pb5(CO3)3O(OH)2)。这种物质是油和氧化铅（PbO）反应生成的，这表明达·芬奇可能也使用了后一种化合物。

注：Plumbonacrite是一种含铅的无机化合物。这种化合物是一种白色或灰白色的固体，主要存在于某些矿石中，也可能作为工业副产品或沉淀物出现。该化合物在艺术和文化遗产保护领域具有一定的重要性，因为它经常出现在古老的油画和其他艺术品中，作为颜料的一部分。由于含有铅，Plumbonacrite是一种有毒物质，因此在处理或与之接触时需要特别小心。它也是研究古老艺术品和文化遗产的重要线索之一，因为通过分析这种化合物，科学家和研究人员可以更好地了解古代艺术家使用的材料和技术。

compound /ˈkɒm.paʊnd/ 作名词，1）表示“化合物，复合物，混合物”，英文解释为“a chemical that combines two or more elements”举个🌰：Salt is a compound of sodium and chlorine. 盐是钠和氯的化合物。

2）表示“（围起来的）场地，楼群，院落”，英文解释为“an area surrounded by fences or walls that contains a group of buildings”举个🌰：They marched into the compound. 他们进入大院。

作动词，表示“使加重，使加剧，使恶化”，英文解释为“to make a problem or difficult situation worse”举个🌰：Her terror was compounded by the feeling that she was being watched. 她有种被人监视的感觉，这加剧了她的恐惧感。

🎬电影《盗梦空间》（Inception）中的台词提到：And when you enter a dream within that dream, the effect is compounded. 当你进入梦中梦，效果会更强。

作形容词，表示“复合的”，英文解释为“consisting of two or more parts”或者表示“（利息）以复利计算的”，英文解释为“used to refer to a system of paying interest in which interest is paid both on the original amount of money invested (= given to companies hoping to get more back) or borrowed and on the interest that has collected over a period of time”如：compound interest 复利。

"Leonardo probably endeavored to prepare a thick paint suitable for covering the wooden panel of the Mona Lisa by treating the oil with a high load of lead(II) oxide, PbO," write the researchers in their published paper.

研究人员在他们发表的论文中写道：“达·芬奇可能试图利用大量氧化铅来处理油，从而制备出一种适合覆盖《蒙娜丽莎》画板的厚涂料。”

美式endeavor 英式endeavour /enˈdev.ər/ 表示“努力；奋力”，英文解释为“to try to do something”举个🌰：Engineers are endeavouring to locate the source of the problem. 工程师们正竭尽全力查找问题的根源。

The same PbO compound was found in several microsamples taken from the surface of The Last Supper, another famous painting from da Vinci. However, the only references to PbO in the Italian artist's writings were related to skin and hair remedies.

在达·芬奇另一幅名画《最后的晚餐》（The Last Supper）表面采集的几个微小样本中也发现了相同的氧化铅化合物。然而，在这位意大利艺术家的手稿中，唯一提到氧化铅的是用于皮肤和头发治疗。

reference /ˈref.ər.əns/ 1）表示“提到；谈到；论及”，英文解释为“a mention of something”举个🌰：Knowing what had happened, I avoided making any reference to (= mentioning) weddings. 因为我知道发生了什么，所以就避开不谈婚礼的事儿。

2）表示“引文出处；参考书目”，英文解释为“a writer or a book, article, etc. that is mentioned in a piece of writing, showing you where particular information was found”

remedy /ˈrem.ə.di/ 表示“疗法，治疗；补救（办法），纠正（办法）”，英文解释为“a successful way of curing an illness or dealing with a problem or difficulty”如：an effective herbal remedy for headaches 用草药治疗头疼的有效疗法。

Even though it's not included in his writings, it nevertheless seems that da Vinci made use of this lead(II) oxide as a ground layer. It's something that's been hypothesized about before, but now we have more direct evidence of it.

即便没有书面记录，现在看来达·芬奇确实使用了这种氧化铅作为底层（颜料）。这是之前的假设，如今我们有了更直接的证据。

hypothesize /haɪˈpɑːθəsaɪz/ 表示“假设，假定”，英文解释为“to give a possible but not yet proved explanation for something”举个🌰：There's no point hypothesizing about how the accident happened, since we'll never really know. 假定事故是如何发生的没有任何意义，因为我们永远也不会知道真实情况是怎样的。

It's thought that the lead(II) oxide power would've been heated and dissolved in linseed or nut oil by da Vinci, producing a mixture that's thicker and faster drying than traditional oil paints – a recipe that then went on to be used by other artists.

人们认为，达·芬奇是将氧化铅加热后溶解在亚麻籽油或坚果油中，制成了一种比传统油画颜料更厚、更快干的涂料。后来其他艺术家沿用了这一配方。

dissolve /dɪˈzɒlv/ 1）表示“（使）溶解”，英文解释为“(of a solid) to be absorbed by a liquid, especially when mixed, or (of a liquid) to absorb a solid”举个🌰：Dissolve two spoons of powder in warm water. 将两勺粉末溶解在温水中。

2）表示“解散；解除；终止（婚姻关系或业务协议）”，英文解释为“When a marriage or business arrangement is dissolved, it is officially ended.”举个🌰：Their marriage was dissolved in 2019. 他们的婚姻于2019年走到了尽头。

补充：

📍dissolve into tears/laughter表示“情不自禁地哭/笑了起来”（to suddenly start to cry or laugh）举个🌰：When he saw her picture, he dissolved into tears. 看见她的照片，他情不自禁地哭了起来。

linseed /ˈlɪn.siːd/ 表示“亚麻籽”，英文解释为“a type of flax plant grown for its seeds, from which oil is made”

表示“混合物；混合体；混合料”，英文解释为“a substance made from a combination of different substances, or any combination of different things”举个🌰：Their latest CD is a mixture of new and old songs. 他们最新的光盘中收录了新歌和老歌。

recipe /ˈres.ɪ.pi/除了表示“食谱”，还可以指“方法；秘诀；诀窍”，英文解释为“a method or an idea that seems likely to have a particular result”举个🌰：What's her recipe for success? 她成功的秘诀是什么？

The same plumbonacrite substance has also been discovered in The Night Watch painting by Rembrandt, created in 1642 – almost a century and a half after the Mona Lisa. That suggests the Dutch master used a similar technique to da Vinci.

在伦勃朗（Rembrandt）创作于1642年的画作《夜巡》（The Night Watch）中也发现了同样的含铅化合物plumbonacrite，该画作比《蒙娜丽莎》晚了将近一个半世纪，表明这位荷兰大师使用了与达·芬奇类似的技术。

This discovery is another example of how modern-day analysis techniques are opening up new findings about historical artifacts. Advanced 3D rendering has previously been used to help study another da Vinci painting, Salvator Mundi.

这一发现再次证明了现代分析技术对于历史文物研究的重要性。此前，先进的3D渲染技术用于研究达·芬奇的另一幅画作《救世主》（Salvator Mundi）。

美式 artifact 英式 artefact /ˈɑː.tə.fækt/ 表示“（尤指具有史学价值的）人工制品，制造物，手工艺品”，英文解释为“an object that is made by a person, such as a tool or a decoration, especially one that is of historical interest”

It's also testament to the constant inventiveness of Leonardo da Vinci, a man who achieved greatness not just in his painting, but also in many other fields – including mathematics, chemistry, and engineering.

这些研究也突显了达·芬奇在不仅仅是绘画，还有数学、化学和工程等多个领域的出色创新能力。

testament /ˈtes.tə.mənt/ 表示“证明；验证”，英文解释为“proof”举个🌰：The detail of her wildlife paintings is (a) testament to (= proof of) her powers of observation. 她画野生动物十分细致，这证明她有很强的观察能力。

"He was someone who loved to experiment, and each of his paintings is completely different technically," chemist Victor Gonzalez, from the Institut de Recherche de Chimie Paris in France, told the Associated Press.

“他是一个热衷于实验的人，他的每一幅画在技术层面上都各不相同，”来自法国巴黎化学研究所（Institut de Recherche de Chimie Paris）的化学家维克多·冈萨雷斯（Victor Gonzalez）接受美联社采访时表示。

The research has been published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society.

该研究已在《美国化学会志》（Journal of the American Chemical Society）上发表。

- 词汇盘点 -

- 词汇助记 By ChatGPT -