Weekend, Where to go丨200多年前，一位英国青年来到中国，拜见了乾隆，逛了圆明园

In 1793, a young British man named William Alexander arrived in China. It was his first time in the Middle Kingdom.

1793年, 英国青年威廉·亚历山大第一次踏上了中国的土地。

The 26-year-old Alexander was an artist with Britain's first diplomatic mission to China, led by George Macartney (1737-1806).

亚历山大以艺术家的身份加入了英国首个出访中国的外交代表团，而它的领队正是乔治·马戛尔尼。（这个细节大概历史老师都没说过。）

▲马戛尔尼，存于英国国家肖像馆

The delegation, known as the Macartney embassy, attempted to open up ports to British trade and establish diplomatic relations with the Qing government.

这个代表团日后被称为马戛尔尼使团，它的使命是寻求与清政府建立外交、贸易关系的可能性。

Alexander's task was to document the voyage. Altogether, he produced more than 2,000 sketches and watercolors.

亚历山大用画笔记录下使团的此次中国之行。他总共绘制了超过2000幅的速写和水彩。

Some of the paintings he went on to reproduce as engravings, upon his return to London.

在回到伦敦以后，他又将其中的一些画刻印成版画。

He was particularly impressed by the Chinese style of fortresses and traditional pailou arches.

在亚历山大的中国之行中，给他留下印象的有传统的牌楼和碉堡。

This engraving is richly detailed. It shows officials overseeing the punishment of three men in front of a pailou, behind which the audience watch a performance on a raised theater stage.

这幅版画描绘了许多细节，比如牌楼前被惩戒的人和一旁监督的官员，牌楼后面观看戏台演出的人群。

Another shows the Emperor Qianlong, then 82, being carried into a large, domed tent as part of a grand ceremony to receive the British delegation.

亚历山大还见证了82岁的乾隆皇帝接见马戛尔尼使团的盛大场面。下面这幅版画画的就是82岁的乾隆在会见之前被抬着进入一顶圆顶的大帐篷。

This historic meeting took place in Chengde, rather than Beijing.

这次历史性的会见在承德举行，而非北京。

Alexander also painted a portrait of emperor, revealing how he looked to Western eyes:

亚历山大还绘制了一幅乾隆皇帝的肖像。在一个西方观察者的眼中，中国最高统治者的形象是这样的：

The British delegation was escorted to a residence near Yuanmingyuan, the Old Summer Palace, where the gifts they had brought were put on display.

英国使团随后被护送到圆明园附近的一处居所下榻，而他们带来的礼物就在圆明园展出。

This engraving of Alexander's shows a picturesque part of the palace, which was burned down in 1860.

在这幅版画中，亚历山大呈现了圆明园的秀丽景色。这所万园之园随后在1860年被焚毁。

Alexander's engravings are now on show at the Arthur M. Sackler Museum of Art and Archaeology in Peking University.

亚历山大的这组版画现在来到了位于北京大学的赛克勒考古与艺术博物馆展出。

They are part of an ongoing exhibition titled From Hogarth to Turner, which celebrates the golden age of British painting from the 18th to 19th centuries.

这次名为“从霍加斯到特纳”的展览带来了英国版画艺术在18-19世纪达到黄金时期的作品。
These prints were purchased and donated to the museum by Donald Stone, 74, who has been teaching English literature at Peking University since 2006.

这些版画均来自唐纳德·斯通教授的购藏，并已被捐赠给赛克勒博物馆。今年已经74岁的斯通教授从2006年起就在北大英文系执教。

Professor Stone has been an avid collector for nearly six decades, developing a particular interest in English drawings over the past 43 years.

斯通教授本人热衷于艺术品的收藏，已经持续了60年的时间，特别对于英国绘画的收藏也有43年的时间，可以说对于英国绘画有着极大的兴趣。

You probably don't know much about British lithographs of the 18th and 19th centuries, but this exhibition has brought together the most creative artists of that period, and shows how their booming popularity was bolstered by the wide-spread application of printing technology.

对于18-19世纪的英国版画，你可能了解得不多。这次的展览就聚集了当时最具有创造力的英国艺术家，同时也展现了印刷技术的广泛运用如何让艺术家的作品备受欢迎。

My favorite is a set of four engravings by William Hogarth (1697-1764) called Four Times of Day, which vividly depicts day-to-day life in 18th century London.

我自己很喜欢威廉·哈格斯的一组版画。这套名为《伦敦一天中的四个时刻》的作品生动刻画了伦敦普通市民的日常生活。
How well do you know the British capital? See if you can recognize any of the famous landmarks featured in this collection of works.

如果你很熟悉伦敦，那来看看你能否认出画中的一些景点。

Morning shows St Paul's Church in Covent Garden, with the notorious Tom King's Coffee House in front — a known location for prostitutes to meet customers.

《早晨》中出现了位于考文特公园的圣保罗教堂；教堂前面是一家因为娼妓和嫖客出入而臭名昭著的小咖啡馆兼酒馆。

In Noon, a busy street scene on present-day Charing Cross Road shows people wearing French-style clothing — believed to be Huguenot refugees from France. The church of St Giles-in-the-Fields can be seen in the background.

《午间》的远景是圣基尔斯教堂，而近景的街道上有许多法式着装的人，据此判断这很可能是今天的查令十字街，因为它曾经是法国难民居住的地方。

Evening shows a couple passing by Sadler Wells Theater, on the left. Can you spot anything unusual about the pair?

《傍晚》中的左侧是萨德勒威尔斯剧院。这幅画里还有一处有意思的细节，就在画中心的这对正在散步的夫妇身上。

The man holds a girl in his arms and has a pair of horns growing out of his head, indicating that he is a cuckold and his wife is pregnant with another man.

我们可以看到丈夫怀抱着一个小女孩，而奇怪的是他的脑袋上长着一对犄角。斯通教授解释说，根据当时的风俗，这对犄角暗示男人身边的妻子出轨，怀上了别人的孩子。

In Night, a bronze equestrian statue of Charles II can be seen in the distance.

《午夜》的远景里有一座骑马的查尔斯二世铜像。

While other engravings show St. James' Park, Buckingham Palace and Westminster Abbey.

说到伦敦，怎能没有圣詹姆斯公园，白金汉宫和威斯敏斯特教堂呢？
So come enjoy a time-traveling tour of 18th-century London.

有时间的话就来赛克勒吧，让我们穿越时空，回到18世纪的伦敦。