Museums

博物馆

Over the last couple of decades there's been a tremendous explosion1 in museum attendance2, and I see that3 continuing. As the population grows older, with4 more people studying in their retirement, and as schools5 and universities develop6 more imaginative ways of presenting7 knowledge, museums and galleries will be at the centre8 of the educational process.

To make the most of9 that position, they10 must not just open their doors but ensure that their material is engagingly presented, with flesh-and-blood teachers11 as well as displays that draw on12 information technology.

I think we will dismantle13 the conventional idea of what a museum is and develop new methods of presentation: not hoarding our collections in imposing buildings, but scattering them through site-specific14 museums, possibly even in the open air. The remains of Hadrian's Wall15 are now displayed by a string of different institutions, including local history groups16 and publicly-funded17 museums, and that's a good model.

I'm not a great fan18 of the audio tour19 that leads you to a piece of art and then tells you what to think about it ?the sort of approach the Getty Center20 in Los Angeles takes. I much prefer the interactive calling-up21 of information, on a free-will basis22, via a little handset23. That way24, technology helps you find out more about a particular aspect of a work of art as you stand in front of it.

Technology will continue to be immensely valuable in helping us establish25 the age and provenance26 of works of art. We can use increasingly objective criteria to establish the age of paper, pigments, chemicals and so on, and there will be shocks —sudden realizations that a great piece is a forgery.

The art market itself will, of course, continue to fluctuate in line with27 supply and demand, but in Britain I hope museums and galleries may one day be helped by a government willing to liberalize the tax rules28 and offer private collectors greater incentives to give works to public institutions.

It will remain tricky29 to obtain sponsorship but there is great potential for better business relationships between museums and related industries: the publishers and software companies who can manufacture replicas and reproductions30 under licence31.

A century ago, no one could have guessed32 there would be a museum dedicated to33 air and space travel on the Mall34, in Washington DC, so it's impossible to say what new museums we might have in 100 years. But we may turn back to35 neglected areas of history. They've just laid the foundation stone for the Museum of the Native American in Washington36, and I can see a resurgence in our interest in the ancient world ahead37.

(From CAM: Cambridge Alumni Magazine, No.28,1999)

1. there's...explosion：出现爆炸性增长，剧增。
2. attendance：“出席”或“出席率”都无法与“博物馆”搭配，只能译成“参观人数”。
3. that：指“博物馆的参观人数剧增”，汉语不必译出。
4. with：这里表示伴随状态，可以不译。
5. schools：这里不是泛泛的‘学校’，而是与大学相对的中小学。
6. develop：开发，推出。
7. presenting：展示。由于宾语是“知识”，可译成“传授”。
8. at the centre： 占据中心地位／起关键作用。
9. make the most of...：最大限度地利用……，充分发挥……的作用。
10.they：指‘博物馆和美术馆’。汉语不常用“它们”作主语指称无生命的事物，这里最好把代词的所指译出来。
11.flesh-and-blood teachers：这里的‘有血有肉’指与机器人相对的‘真人’或‘活人’。由于不便直译，这里不妨变通一下，译成“教师生动的讲解”。
12.draw on：吸取，借助。
13.dismantle：拆除。这里因与“常规观念”搭配，最好译成“打破”。
14.site-specific：位于特定地点的。
15.Hadrian's Wall：哈德良长城。公元122年罗马皇帝Hadrian下令建造，西起Solway Firth，东至Tyne河口，成为罗马人保卫不列颠省北疆的屏障。
16.local history groups：这里有两个可能的意思，一个是“研究地方史的团体”，另一个是“当地研究历史的团体”。前一个意思的可能性更大。
17.publicly-funded：这里的‘公共出资的’实际就是“国家拨款的”。
18.not a great fan：‘不是痴迷者’，也就是“不太喜欢”。
19.the audio tour：解说机导游。
20.Getty Center：格蒂中心。坐落于洛杉矶，是世界上收藏最丰富的私人博物馆，由亿万富翁格蒂捐赠建立。
21.calling-up：此处与“信息”搭配，应译成“提取”。
22.on a free-will basis：在自由意志的基础上。也就是“随意操作”。
23.handset：这里不是电话的“话筒”，而是手持控制器，简称“手控器”。
24.that way：直译是‘那样’，但是汉语习惯说‘这样’。又如本文第二段第一句话中的that position，不能直译成‘那一作用’，而应译成“这一作用”。
25.establish：鉴定，确定。
26.age and provenance：年代和出处。
27.in line with: 根据，随着。
28.liberalize...rules：放松纳税规定。
29.tricky：难办，费力。
30.replicas and reproductions：仿制品和复制品。
31.under licence：在获得准许的情况下。
32.guessed：这里是“料到，预见到”的意思，不能按字面意思译成“猜”。
33.dedicated to：专门展示。
34.the Mall：（美国华盛顿国会大厦与华盛顿纪念碑之间的）草地广场。
35.turn back to：回过头来关注。
36.They've ... Washington：直译成‘他们刚刚在华盛顿举行了…’翻译腔太浓，因为英语的they可以用来表示“当局”，汉语的“他们”没有这种用法。不如转换句式，译成“华盛顿刚刚举行了…”。laid the foundation stone for...：‘为…埋下了基石’就是“举行了…的奠基仪式”。Native American：一般译成“土著美洲人”，有人认为这种译法政治上不正确，应当译成“原住美洲人”。
37.ahead：本文是‘在前面’，转义是‘将来’。