Unit 1

Cultural relics

A. The Pyramids in Egypt

B. Potala Palace in Lhasa

C. The Great Wall in China

D. The Taj Mahal in India

E. The Big Ben in England

A cultural relic• is any object, building or item that

was made sometime in the past. It may be many thousands of years old or it may be a few hundred;

• may or may not be valuable;• tells us something of the way people

lived at the time it was made. This may be because of its method of manufacture or how the item was used.

F. The Amber Room in Russia

Amber

Amber is actually the fossilized sap( 变成化石的树液 ) or liquid from pine tree( 松树 ). If conditions are right ， the sap will finally become hard and turn it into the resin （树脂 ） that we know today. If it has come into contact with insects when still in its liquid form, they may become caught in this sticky liquid and become part of the amber. So real amber may\should contain some evidence of insect life. Amber can be several colors: brown, yellow, green, and honey-gold.

Read paragraph 1 and 3 and tell why the Amber Room is one of the wonders of the world. 1. Several tons of amber were used to make it.2. The design of the room was in the fancy style

popular in those days.3. It was also a treasure decorated with gold and

jewels, which took the country’s best artists about ten years to make.

4. Almost six hundred candles lit the room, and its mirrors and pictures shone like gold.

Scanning

1716

1770

1941

2003

Frederick William gave the ⅠAmber Room to Peter the Great as a gift.

Catherine had completed the Ⅱadding to the Amber room.

The Nazi German army stole the Amber Room.

The rebuilding of the Amber Room was completed.

years

How did the Amber Room become

one of the wonders of the world?

How was a new Amber Room built?

How did the Amber Room get lost?

How was the Amber Room made?

Why did the King of Prussia give the Amber Room to the Czar of Russia as a gift?

Para 3

Para 5

Para 4

Para 1

Para 2

The following five questions summarize the main idea of the five paragraphs in the passage. Put the paragraph numbers before them.

Skimming

1. Frederick I

2. Frederick William I

3. Peter the Great

4. Catherine II

5. The Nazi army

6. The Russians and

Germans

A. Stole the Amber Room.

B. Sent a troop of his best soldiers to the King of Prussia.

C. Had the Amber Room made.

D. Had it moved outside St Petersburg.

E. Gave it to the Czar as a gift.

F. Built a new Amber Room after studying pictures of the old one.

Join the correct parts of the sentences together. Then answer some questions.

Intensive reading —Detailed information

1. How did Peter the Great use the

Amber Room ?

He used it as a small reception hall for important visitors.

Intensive reading

3. In 1941, which country did the city of Konigsberg belong to?

Germany

2. What was the relationship between Germany and Russia in September 1941?

They were at war.

4. How old is the city of St Petersburg

this year?

It is 306 years old this year.

The clue of the storyThe clue of the story

Peter the Peter the Great Great CzarCzar

CatherinCatherineeⅡⅡ

FrederickⅠ

Frederick WilliamⅠ

Frederick WilliamⅠ

Nazi

FrederickⅠ

Frederick WilliamⅠ

Frederick WilliamⅠ

Nazi

gave as a gift

Stol

en

by

The Amber Room was made of several tons of amber. It was designed for the palace of Frederick I in Prussia. Then in 1716， the king, Frederick William I, sent it to Peter the Great as a gift of friendship. And it soon became part of the winter palace. Later in 1770, Catherine Ⅱ completed the adding to the Amber room. In September, 1941 the Nazi German army secretly stole the Amber Room and then it disappeared mystically.

A brief summary of the text

1. Write your own summary of the

reading. Each group needs to have one

student to read out your work in the

next class.

2. Find out the usage of these word in your

dictionary: survive, decorate, belong to,

amaze.

Homework