5.萨克赛瓦曼
Not far from the famous Inca city of Machu Picchu lies Sacsayhuaman, a strange embankment of stone walls located just outside of Cuzco. The series of three walls was assembled from massive 200-ton blocks of rock and limestone, and they are arranged in a zigzag pattern along the hillside. The longest is roughly 1000 feet in length and each stands some fifteen feet tall. The monument is in astonishingly good condition for its age, especially considering the region's propensity for earthquakes, but the tops of the walls are somewhat demolished, as the monument was plundered by the Spanish to build churches in Cuzco. The area surrounding the monument has been found to be the source of several underground catacombs called chincanas, which were supposedly used as connecting passageways to other Inca structures in the area.
离马丘比丘的印加城不远就是萨克赛瓦曼——位于库斯科之外的一堵奇怪的石头路堤。这三堵墙由200吨重的岩石块和石灰岩拼凑而成，并沿山坡摆成曲折的图形。最长的粗略估计有1000英尺长，竖立起来约为15英尺。相对于它的年龄来说——特别是考虑到这片区域地震频发——完好程度让人惊讶。但因西班牙在库斯科抢夺此遗迹，并在上面建造教堂，使遗迹的顶部有部分损坏。遗迹四周是个地下墓场，被称作是迷宫地区，连接区域内其他印加建筑的通道。
The Mystery：Most scientists agree that Sacsayhuaman served as a kind of fortress of barrier wall, but this has been disputed. The strange shape and angles of the wall have led some speculate that it may have had a more symbolic function, one example being that the wall, when seen next to Cuzco from above, forms the shape of the head of a Cougar. Even more mysterious than the monument's use, though, are the methods that were used in its construction. Like most Inca stone works, Sacsayhuaman was built with large stones that fit together so perfectly that not even a sheet of paper can be placed in the gaps between them. Just how the Incas managed such expert placements, or, for that matter, how they managed to transport and lift the heavy hunks of stone, is still not fully known.
谜团：大多数科学家认同萨克赛瓦曼被用作围墙的堡垒，但其作用还是被争论不休。奇怪的形状和角度使人们猜测它有更具代表性的功能——例如鸟瞰紧挨着库斯科的那堵墙时，像是美洲豹的头。比其用途更充满疑惑的是它建造的方法。像大多数印加石头作品一样，萨克赛瓦曼是用高度契合的巨石建造而成，甚至纸片都插不进他们的缝隙。只是印加人是怎样实现石块之间的无缝对接，又或者说，他们是怎样运输并举起如此沉重的石块的，种种问题至今尚不得知。
4.复活节岛摩艾
One of the most iconic series of monuments in the Pacific islands is the Moai, a group of huge statues of exaggerated human figures that are found only on the small, isolated island of Rapa Nui, or Easter Island. The Moai were carved sometime between 1250 and 1500 AD by the island's earliest inhabitants, and are believed to depict the people's ancestors, who in their culture were held in the same regard as deities. The Moai were chiseled and carved from tuff, a volcanic rock that is prevalent on the island, and they all feature the same characteristics of an oversized head, broad nose, and a mysterious, indecipherable facial expression. Scientists have determined that as many as 887 of the statues were originally carved, but years of infighting among the island's clans led to many being destroyed. Today, only 394 are still standing, the largest of which is 30 feet tall and weighs over 70 tons.
太平洋岛屿上最具标志性的遗迹是摩艾石像，一批用巨石雕成的夸张人物造型，只发现于小而孤立的拉帕努伊岛或复活节岛。摩艾石像在公元1250年到1500年间被岛上最早一批居民雕刻而成，被认为刻画出了人们的祖先，同时在他们的文化中被认为是神灵。摩艾石像由一种保存于岛上的火山岩凝灰岩凿刻雕刻而成，并且都具有相同的特征——巨大的头部、阔鼻子和难以捉摸的面部表情。科学家断定最初有887座石像，但经过岛上部落之间的常年争斗，使很多都被破坏殆尽。现今，只有394座石像仍然存在，最大的有30英尺高，重量大于70吨。
The Mystery：While there is a fairly solid consensus on why the Moai were erected, how the islanders did it is still up for debate. The average Moai weighs several tons, and for years scientists were at a loss to describe how the monuments were transported from Rano Raraku, where most of them were constructed, to their various locations around the island. In recent years, the most popular theory is that the builders used wooden sleds and log rollers to move the Moai, an answer that would also explain how the once verdant island became almost totally barren due to deforestation.
谜团：现在，摩艾石像竖立于岛屿之上的原因已达成共识，但对于岛上居民是如何做到的仍旧争论不休。摩艾石像平均都有几吨，并且几年来科学家们仍对这些建造于岛屿附近的拉拉库采石场的石象是怎样运输过来的茫然不知。近几年，最普遍的推测是建造者用木质推车和原木滚筒来移动摩艾石像，这个答案同时也能解释为什么翠绿的小岛会因伐木而贫瘠。
3.The Georgia Guidestones
3.佐治亚引导石
While most of the mysterious monuments on this list only became that way as centuries passed, the Georgia Guidestones, also known as American Stonehenge, are one landmark that was always intended to be an enigma. The monument, which consists of four monolithic slabs of granite that support a single capstone, was commissioned in 1979 by a man who went by the pseudonym of R.C. Christian. A local mason carefully crafted it so that one slot in the stones is aligned with the sun on the solstices and equinoxes, and one small hole is always pointed in the direction of the North Star. Most interesting, though, are the inscriptions on the slabs, which an accompanying plaque describes as "the guidestones to an Age of Reason." In eight different languages, the slabs offer a strange ten-point plan to ensure peace on Earth that includes vague proclamations like "prize truth–beauty–love–seeking harmony with the infinite," to very specific commands like "maintain humanity under 500,000,000 in perpetual balance with nature." Comments like this one have made the Guidestones one of the most controversial landmarks in the United States, and they have long been protested and even vandalized by groups that would like to see them demolished.
本文提及的大多数神秘遗迹多是因为历史太过久远。佐治亚引导石，和美国巨石阵一样有名，一直是未解之谜。遗迹由四个花岗岩单片板支撑一个压顶石组成，由一位化名R·C·克里斯蒂安（R.C. Christian）的人委托制造而成。当地的瓦匠仔细地进行精巧的制作，使石头上的缝隙在二至点和二分点时对准太阳，而上面还有一个小洞总是指向北极星的方向。有趣的是石板上的碑文，一块竖立在旁的小石板，被称为"理性时代的引导石"。石碑上用8种语言写出了一种奇怪的10分制计划来确保地球上的和平，包括模糊的宣言，像是"倡导真 ，美 ，爱 ，寻求与宇宙和谐"，较为特别的理论也有"把人类的总数维持在5亿以下以保持与自然界的平衡"，诸如此类的论述让巨石阵成为美国最受争议的地标之一。它有很长时间被排斥，甚至被肆意破坏，一些政党很乐于见到他们被毁坏。
The Mystery：For all their controversy, very little is known about who built the Guidestones or what their true purpose is. R.C. Christian claimed he represented an independent organization when he commissioned the landmark, but neither he nor his group has spoken up since its construction. Since the monument was built during the height of the Cold War, one popular theory about the group's intentions is that the Guidestones were to serve as a primer for how to rebuild society in the aftermath of a nuclear holocaust.
谜团：尽管所争论的话题中很少涉及——谁建造的引导石？或者R·C·克里斯蒂安在委托建造此地标的时候，宣告他所代表的独立组织的目的何在？——这些问题。但他和他所在的政党在地标建成后就没有进行过发言。遗迹建于冷战的高潮时期，最被接受的理论就是，引导石最初是用于说明怎样在核能爆炸后重建城市。
2.The Great Sphinx of Giza
2.狮身人面像
Sphinxes are massive stone statues that depict the body of a reclining lion with the head and face of a human. The figures are found all over the world in different forms, but they are most commonly linked with Egypt, which features the most famous example in the form of the Great Sphinx of Giza. Incredibly, the statue is carved out of one monolithic piece of rock, and at 240 feet long, 20 feet wide, and 66 feet tall, it is considered to be the biggest monument of its kind in the world. Historians largely accept the function of the Sphinx to have been that of a symbolic guardian, since the statues were strategically placed around important structures like temples, tombs, and pyramids. The Great Sphinx of Giza appears to be no different. It stands adjacent to the pyramid of the pharaoh Khafra, and most archeologists believe that it is his face that is depicted on that of the statue.
狮身人面像由一块大石头雕刻而成，描画了一头有人类头颅且躺着的狮子。它在世界各地以不同形式出现，但通常都可以和埃及联系在一起，其中最出名的是吉萨的古埃及狮身人面像。难以置信的是，雕塑是用一块完整的巨石雕刻而成的，240英尺长，20英尺宽，66英尺高，被认为是所有狮身人面像中最大的一个。狮身人面像被刻意地摆放在重要的建筑物附近——像寺庙、坟墓和金字塔——使历史学家们很大程度上认同它是守护者的象征。吉萨的古埃及狮身人面像好像没什么不同。它坐落于法老哈夫拉金字塔的附近，并且大部分的历史学家都相信雕刻的是他的样子。
The Mystery：Despite its reputation as one of the most famous monuments of antiquity, there is still very little known about the Great Sphinx of Giza. Egyptologists might have a small understanding of why the statue was built, but when, how, and by who is still shrouded in mystery. The pharaoh Khafra is the main suspect, which would date the structure back to around 2500 BC, but other scientists have argued that evidence of water erosion of the statue suggests that it is much older and perhaps even predated the dynastic era of the Egyptians. This theory has few modern adherents, but if true it would mean the Great Sphinx of Giza is even more mysterious than previously believed.
谜团：尽管它描述的像是古代遗迹中最著名的，但知道它的人并不多。埃及古物学者可能很难理解其所建原因，但是何时、为何、由何人所建仍旧是一个谜团。法老哈夫拉有最大的嫌疑，雕像的年代应该追溯到公元前2500年左右，但是其他科学家认为雕像上的水侵蚀的迹象表明他们可能更古老，甚至可能在埃及朝代之前。这条理论现在并未得到多少人的赞同，但如果这是真的，也代表吉萨的古埃及狮身人面像比之前所想的更加神秘。
1.巨石阵
Of all the world's famous monuments, none has gained as much of a reputation for pure, simple mystery as Stonehenge. Stonehenge has been inspiring debate among scholars, scientists, and historians since the Middle Ages. Located in the English countryside, the landmark is believed to date back to 2500 BC, and consists of several mammoth pieces of rock arranged and piled on top of one another in what appears at first to be a random design. The site is surrounded by a small, circular ditch, and is flanked by burial mounds on all sides. Although the rock formations that still remain are undoubtedly impressive, it is thought that the modern version of Stonehenge is only a small remnant of a much larger monument that was damaged with the passing of time, and it is largely believed that the building process was so extensive that it could have lasted on and off for anywhere from 1500 to 7000 years.
世界上著名的遗迹中，没有一个像巨石阵一样因简单的谜团而闻名于世，巨石阵引发了中世纪的学者们、科学家们和历史学家们的争论。巨石阵座落于英国的乡村，其历史可以追溯到公元前2500年，由几块巨大的石头组装而成。彼此堆积在一起，猛然看起来像是一个胡乱的设计。遗迹周围围绕着小的、圆形的沟渠，两侧到处都是坟丘。虽然岩石块的形状无疑让人印象深刻，但据说现代的巨石阵只是原来大遗迹随时间流逝的剩余部分。并且它的建造过程似乎也跨度极大，它断断续续的从1500年一直搭建到7000年。
The Mystery：Stonehenge has become renowned for puzzling even the most brilliant researchers, and over the years the many gaps in the history of its construction, the nature of its use, and the true identity of its builders have become known as "The Mystery of Stonehenge." The Neolithic people who built the monument left behind no written records, so scientists can only base their theories on the meager evidence that exists at the site. This has led to wild speculation that the monument was left by aliens, or that it was built by some eons-old society of technologically advanced super-humans. All craziness aside, the most common explanation remains that Stonehenge served as some kind of graveyard monument that played a role in the builders' version of the afterlife, a claim that is backed up by its proximity to several hundred burial mounds. Yet another theory suggests that the site was a place for spiritual healing and the worship of long dead ancestors.
谜团：巨石阵因其自身的谜团使得最聪明的研究者们感到迷惑而出名。多年来，在它历史的建造过程中有许多历史的缝隙，它的原本用途，它的真正的建造者都变成了知名的"巨石阵谜团"。建造巨石阵且处于巨石器时代的人们并未留下任何书面记载，所以科学家们只能以存在于遗迹中的贫乏的证据作为理论。这导致谣言四起，说遗迹是外星人所留下，或是由超越人类科技的永世社会建造而成。撇开疯狂的言论不说，最被接受的理论是，巨石阵是作为某种墓地遗迹而存在的，在建造者转生中扮演着角色。这种言论被周围几百个古墓支持。但是也有另外的言论表明遗迹是一个用于精神治疗、敬奉长眠祖先的地方。
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