秦始皇陵
秦始皇陵 （mausoleum）是世界上规模最大、结构最奇特、内涵最丰富的帝王陵墓之一。1974年，因当地农民打井而偶然发掘的“秦始皇兵马俑 （the Qin's Terra-cotta Warriors and Horses）坑”，一经发现就震惊了世界。秦始皇陵的规模之宏伟，葬品之丰富，在中国都是空前的。秦俑坑里的兵马军阵，是秦始皇武装力量的缩影，彰显了秦国的综合国力。法国前总统希拉克先生观光后赞叹道：“世界上有七大奇迹，现在要加上秦俑。不看金字塔，不算真正到过埃及；不看秦俑坑，不算真正到过中国。”现在，“秦始皇兵马俑”被世人公认为世界“第八奇迹”。
翻译点拨
1. 秦始皇陵：原文中给出了“陵”的英文，为mausoleum。mausoleum和tomb的区别在于，前者指名人、帝王等的规模较大的坟基，tomb就相对较小。
2. 坑：这个字可以直译成pit，也可以翻译成vault或basement，取其“地下室”的意思。
3. 震惊了世界：可译为created a big stir worldwide或shocked the world。stir在这里为名词，意思是“轰动”。
4. 空前的：即“无前例的”之义，故可译为unprecedented。
5. 是……的缩影：“缩影”可译为miniature或epitome。
6. 被世人公认：可简洁地译为recognized universally或is recognized by people all over the world。
参考译文
The Mausoleum of Emperor Qinshihuang
As one of the world's largest imperial mausoleums, the mausoleum of Emperor Qinshihuang has the strangest structure with the most abundant connotation. In 1974, the Qin's Terra-cotta Warriors and Horses vault, which was unearthed accidentally by local farmers when they were digging wells, shocked the world. In terms of its grand scale and abundance of buried treasures, the mausoleum of Emperor Qinshihuang is unprecedented in the history of China. This terra-cotta army in full battle array is a miniature of the military power of Emperor Qinshihuang, demonstrating the overall national strength of the Qin Dynasty. After visiting the mausoleum, the former French President Chirac highly praised it by saying that“There used to be seven wonders in the world. Now the Qin's terra-cotta figures should make the eighth. As no one can boast about his visit to Egypt without having seen the Pyramids, so no one can claim to have truly visited China without witnessing these terra-cotta figures.”Now, the Qin's Terra-cotta Warriors and Horses is recognized universally as the Eighth Wonder of the World.
知识小贴士
秦始皇陵是中国历史上第一个皇帝嬴政（公元前259年～公元前210年）的陵墓，位于中国北部陕西省临潼区城东5公里处的骊山北麓。秦始皇陵建于公元前246年至公元前208年，历时39年，是中国历史上第一个规模庞大、设计完善的帝王陵寝。秦始皇陵筑有内外两重夯土城垣，象征着都城的皇城和宫城。据史料记载，秦陵中还建有各式宫殿（palace），陈列着许多奇珍异宝（rare treasures）。古埃及金字塔（pyramid）是世界上最大的地上王陵，中国秦始皇陵是世界上最大的地下皇陵，它充分表现了2000多年前中国人民巧夺天工（superb craftsmanship excelling nature）的艺术才能，是中华民族的骄傲和宝贵财富。
