2015考研英語必讀雜志《經(jīng)濟學人》節(jié)選

　　The queen's knickers

　　女王的短褲

　　Victoria’s secret

　　維多利亞的秘密

　　What do you buy the monarchist who has everything? One auction bidder has the answer: knickers that belonged to Queen Victoria. The buyer paid 6,200 ($9,900) for them on October 12th at an auction in Kent. At her death in 1901, Victoria bequeathed several dozen pairs of bloomers to her servants (“for loyal service”) but only one other complete pair has been found and sold. These drawers are interesting because the 52-inch (132cm) waist shows how well Her Majesty ate in later years. The sale is part of a growing market for the underwear of famous dead people: recent auctions have tried to sell the smalls of Michael Jackson, Anna Nicole Smith and Elvis Presley. Someone wanted 7,000 for the King’s briefs in 2012 but they didn’t sell. Only Victoria’s have sat on an actual throne.

　　你要從擁有一切的君主那里買什么?有一位拍賣者知道答案：曾屬于維多利亞女王的短褲。10 月12 號，這位買家在肯特舉行的一場拍賣會上以6，200 英鎊(9，900 美元)的價格拍下了這條短褲。維多利亞女王在1901 年彌留之際，將好幾十條燈籠褲贈給仆人(因為他們“忠誠的服務”)。但除了剛剛提到的那條之外，迄今只發(fā)現(xiàn)另一條完整的短褲，它已經(jīng)賣出去了。這些襯褲很有意思，因為那52 英寸(132cm)的腰圍顯示出尊貴的女王陛下在晚年伙食相當不錯。這次交易是已故名人內(nèi)衣褲拍賣這個蓬勃發(fā)展的市場的一部分:近期的拍賣會已經(jīng)嘗試拍賣了邁克爾·杰克遜、安娜·妮可·史密斯和貓王的內(nèi)衣褲。2012 年，有人曾希望以7，000 英鎊的價格買下國王的內(nèi)褲，但這是非賣品。只有維多利亞女王的短褲才曾坐在真正的王位上，(惟有維多利亞女王的短褲才真正雄踞價位榜首)。

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