法国王后的珠宝，200年后拍卖
玛丽·安托瓦内特（Marie Antoinette），早年为奥地利女大公，后为法国国王路易十六的王后。法国大革命爆发后，王室出逃未成，路易十六（Louis XVI）被废，法国宣布废除君主制，王后被控犯有叛国罪，被判处死刑，享年38岁。
玛丽·安托瓦内特天生丽质，却成了母亲政治棋盘上的一颗棋子，15岁远嫁法国，与当时还是王储的路易十六结为夫妇。路易十六性格软弱，早期由于生理上的原因不能履行丈夫的责任，并由此放任安托瓦内特的任性胡为以作为补偿。在法国大革命爆发前，安托瓦内特为了排解不幸婚姻带来的苦闷，终日沉迷于打扮、跳舞和赌博中，被讥讽为“赤字皇后”。
在法国大革命爆发之前，钻石项链事件使得安托瓦内特更加不受欢迎，各种恶毒谣言四起，她至死也未能摆脱公众强加给她的奢靡及犯有欺诈的印象。当时的法国正处于内忧外患、危机四伏之中，安托瓦内特的轻率和政治上的幼稚使她在法国大革命时期成为民众泄愤的靶子，最终难逃厄运。
在欧洲皇室贵族中，从来没有一位皇后被如此批判又被如此神圣化，被人称赞又被人侮辱。茨威格在《断头王后》中写道：她那时候还太年轻，不知道所有命运赠送的礼物，早已在暗中标好了价格。
She was still too young to know that life never gives anything for nothing, and that a price is always exacted for what fate bestows授予.
本篇课程首发于2018年11月20日，选自 The Economist Espresso APP
Let them wear jewels: Marie Antoinette
① Louis XVI's wife liked her bling.
② Indeed gemstones cost her her reputation.
③ Marie Antoinette's standing never recovered from a (probably unfair) accusation that she had been involved in a fraud involving an unimaginably valuable diamond necklace.
④ On November 14th, a selection of the doomed queen's baubles—including a necklace strung with 331 pearls and a ring encasing a lock of her hair—go on sale at Sotheby's auction house in Geneva.
⑤ Before she met her bloody end during the French Revolution, a loyal retainer smuggled her riches to Vienna, where they were guarded by relatives until her daughter reclaimed them in 1796.
⑥ For the past month people in cities such as Dubai, New York and Singapore have had the rare opportunity to view—and try on—the priceless jewellery.
⑦ One wonders what the notoriously out-of-touch queen would say if she saw the hoi polloi fondling her diamond ribbon-bow pendant, one of the auction's highlights.
▍一般生词好句
cost sb. sth.: 让某人付出某种代价Meeting you costs me my whole life’s luck.
Jason Mraz <luck>they don’t know how long it takes waiting for a love like this.
standing /ˈstændɪŋ/: n. 名声，声誉；地位，级别
be involved in: 被卷入
involve /ɪnˈvɒlv, ɪnˈvɑːlv/: vt. 涉及；牵涉
a lock of one's hair: ……的一缕头发
Sotheby's /ˈsʌðəbiz/: 苏富比 (拍卖行)
retainer /rɪˈteɪnə, rɪˈteɪnər/: n. (服务多年的) 仆人
smuggle /ˈsmʌɡəl/: vt. 偷偷携带；走私
riches /ˈrɪtʃɪz/: n. (复数) 财富；财产
reclaim /rɪˈkleɪm/: vt. 拿回；取回
the hoi polloi /ˌhɔɪ pəˈlɔɪ/: 民众；老百姓
fondle /ˈfɒndəl, ˈfɑːndəl/: vt. 抚摸；抚弄
▍词汇拓展
1. cost sb. sth.: 让某人付出某种代价
遇见你，竟花光我所有运气。
Meeting you costs me my whole life's luck.
2. standing: n. 名声，声誉；地位，级别
一位名望很高的律师
a lawyer of high standing
巴布的工作有助于提高她在同事中的地位。
Barb's work helped to improve her standing with her colleagues.
▍与“珠宝”相关的词汇
jewel /ˈdʒuːəl/: n. 宝石；(复数 jewels) 珠宝；首饰
bling /blɪŋ/: n. 又大又亮的珠宝
gemstone /ˈdʒemˌstəʊn/: n. (经雕琢的) 宝石
bauble /ˈbɔːbəl, ˈbɑːbəl/: n. 鲜亮价廉的首饰；没有价值的东西
jewellery /ˈdʒuːəlri/: n. (总称/不可数) 珠宝；首饰
pendant /ˈpendənt/: n. (项链上的）垂饰，挂件；有垂饰的项链
▍当时法国宫廷的风格（irregularly too much）
▍钻石项链骗局
https://gushi.tw/the-killing-of-marie-antoinette/
▍责任编辑
李焕、武志琳、章晓丹
