考古學家稱史前人類已將烏龜燒烤作為開胃菜

Professor Avi Gopher (L) and Dr. Ran Barkai, researchers from Tel Aviv University』s Institute of Archaeology, stand at Qesem cave, an excavation site near the town of Rosh Ha』ayin, east of Tel Aviv, December 27, 2010.

　　阿維·高弗教授和拉恩·巴凱博士是以色列特拉維夫大學考古學院的研究人員，2010年12月27日，兩人來到凱塞姆洞穴——這處挖掘地點位於以色列羅什艾因市附近，特拉維夫大學東邊。

　　Prehistoric cave-dwellers enjoyed munching on tortoises roasted in their shells as an appetizer or side dish, Ran Barkai, an archaeologist at Tel Aviv University, said on Tuesday.

　　周二，特拉維夫大學的考古學家拉恩·巴凱稱，史前洞穴居民十分享受咀嚼帶殼燒烤的烏龜，將其作為開胃菜或是配菜食用。

　　Barkai helped lead a research team who found 400,000-year-old tortoise shells and bones in a cave in Israel that showed hunter-gatherers butchered and cooked tortoises as part of a diet dominated by large animals and vegetation.

　　巴凱帶領的研究團隊發現，洞穴內有40萬年前的烏龜殼和骨頭，這表明，狩獵採集者曾屠殺並烹飪烏龜，他們的飲食主要由大型動物和植物組成，而這是他們飲食的一部分。

　　Burn marks were found on the shells discovered in the Qessem cave, as well as signs they were cracked open and cut marks indicating the animal was butchered using flint knives.

　　凱塞姆洞穴中發現的龜殼上有燒痕，還有龜殼被敲破的痕迹，以及表明烏龜是被燧石刀屠殺的切痕。

　　"Now we know they ate tortoises in a rather sophisticated way," Barkai said. "It would have been a supplement - an appetizer, dessert or a side dish - to the meat and fat from large animals."

　　「現在我們知道，他們是用一種相當精細的方式食用烏龜的，」巴凱說，「這應該是大型動物肉和脂肪的補充品——是開胃菜，甜點或者配菜。」

　　Qessem cave was uncovered during road work in 2000 and was believed to be inhabited for about 200,000 years. The site has offered scientists a rare insight into human evolution and accounted for many research papers.
凱塞姆洞穴是在2000年道路施工時被發現的，人們相信，在約20萬年的時間裡，這裡都有人居住。這一挖掘地點為科學家們在人類進化方面的研究提供了一個稀有的洞察視野，並對許多研究論文作出了貢獻。

　　Bones scattered throughout the cave have already suggested a calorie-rich prehistoric menu of horses, fallow deer and wild ox.

　　洞穴中散落的骨頭表明，史前人類有著高卡路里的菜單——馬、小鹿和野牛都囊括在菜單之中。

　　A study last year, based on plaque found on teeth, showed the cave』s inhabitants also ate plant-based material.

　　去年，一項基於牙齒上發現的牙菌斑的研究表明，洞穴居民也食用植物類食品。

　　The latest findings by Barkai』s team, which included members from Spain and Germany, were published this week in the journal Quaternary Science Reviews.

　　巴凱的團隊中包括來自西班牙和德國的成員，這一團隊的最新發現於本周發表在《第四紀科學評論》雜誌上。