# Ancient cave art symbols - 科目：雅思听力真题（Part 4） - 考频：中频 - 最近考试：2022.6.11 - 题目数：10 - 来源页：https://www.yaquan.site/paper/1aeaa108-d9fa-431b-8211-bad3512a31a3（在线机考练习与音频请访问该页面） - 数据更新：2026-10-29 ## 题目原文 00:00:00,420 Now listen carefully and answer questions thirty-one to forty. 00:00:05,900 Hello everyone. My presentation today is about the cave paintings produced by prehistoric artists about thirty thousand years ago, and in particular, the symbols that appear in or near these paintings. These symbols are found deep in caves in many countries around the world, but the ones I'm going to talk about today are mainly European. Firstly, a little about the most common symbols. The symbols that have been discovered are of different shapes and sizes. Some are easily recognizable as they're quite simple. The most basic are just a series of dots, but they may also include forms such as the triangle. However, other symbols are more complex. A case in point is the wavy line. This is sometimes used on its own, but the same wavy line is also used as part of a larger picture of a horse. So we think this is what the wavy line represents. 00:01:10,720 One very important symbol is what's called the hand symbol. 00:01:15,900 This frequently appears on the walls of caves. I'll talk about it in a bit more detail. Firstly, how it was made. The paint itself was made up from a variety of things that cave artists would have had access to. They had fire, so charcoal was one ingredient. Another was the fat from the animals they would have hunted. And lastly, the saliva from their own mouths. 00:01:45,060 Then there's the question of how they actually applied the runny paint onto the walls of the cave. It certainly wouldn't have been easy. They would have had to use something hollow. In fact, it's likely to have looked like a straw, you know, like the kind we use for drinking nowadays. They'd have sucked the paint up into it, then blown it out. Researchers have recently recreated both the paint and the processes used to make the hand symbols. The artist would have first put his hand flat against the wall, then blown the paint onto the wall, creating an outline of the hand. The researchers who've tried to recreate the process have said that not only is it a difficult technique to master, but also that a strange noise is produced. It also led them to feel lightheaded, so we can only imagine that these cave artists felt the same. 00:02:48,080 I'm sure you'll agree that these symbols are really interesting, but they're also of vital importance. Researchers have now identified a total of twenty-six symbols commonly used in France and Spain. We only have this knowledge thanks to a database that's been created and which is being added to all the time. It clearly demonstrates that many symbols are often used in particular combinations, even if they're in different places. This is significant as it looks like different tribes of cave people who lived and traveled through the area at that time would have seen these markings as well as adding to them. Although researchers don't believe that these symbols are a language as such, they are happy to call them a type of code. There is evidence to support this idea. 00:03:40,400 One sequence of five symbols is particularly common in caves in Spain. 00:03:46,520 Exactly the same sequence of five symbols has been found carved into a necklace made from the teeth of a red deer. So it appears that this combination of symbols may have had a special meaning. Of course, many of these explanations are theory as opposed to hard facts, which is why there is disagreement among researchers about the significance of what we are seeing. 00:04:12,720 One theory is called The Great Leap Forward. 00:04:16,800 The idea is that around thirty-five thousand years ago, there was a sudden increase in creativity, which led to the invention of the boat, among other things. However, not everyone agrees. In fact, many scientists believe that what has been found in Africa seems to indicate that this increase in creativity happened much earlier, around seventy to ninety thousand years ago, and more gradually. One example of an artifact that is offered to support the idea is the discovery of different sorts of arrows, which would have been used for hunting. These scientists suggest that the reason more symbols haven't been found from this earlier time is because they would have been painted on things that did not survive, such as wood. In fact, we are very lucky that caves have protected these specimens as well as they have, or we might never have known what these artists were capable of. 00:05:18,880 That is the end of part four. You now have one minute to check your answers to part four. ## 题目与答案 ### 31. The most common symbols include: · simple shapes, e.g. dots and a 31_____ The most common symbols include: · simple shapes, e.g. dots and a 31_____ **答案**：triangle 原文定位：Some are easily recognizable as they're quite simple. The most basic are just a series of dots, but they may also include forms such as the triangle ### 32. · more complex shapes, e.g. a wavy line to represent a 32_____ · more complex shapes, e.g. a wavy line to represent a 32_____ **答案**：horse 原文定位：However, other symbols are more complex. A case in point is the wavy line. This is sometimes used on its own, but the same wavy line is also used as part of a larger picture of a horse. So we think this is what the wavy line represents ### 33. How the hand symbol was made · The paint was made by mixing charcoal with 33_____ and saliva. How the hand symbol was made · The paint was made by mixing charcoal with 33_____ and saliva. **答案**：fat 原文定位：The paint itself was made up from a variety of things that cave artists would have had access to. They had fire, so charcoal was one ingredient. Another was the fat from the animals they would have hunted. And lastly, the saliva from their own mouths ### 34. · The paint was applied using something similar to a 34_____ . · The paint was applied using something similar to a 34_____ . **答案**：straw 原文定位：Then there's the question of how they actually applied the runny paint onto the walls of the cave. It certainly wouldn't have been easy. They would have had to use something hollow. In fact, it's likely to have looked like a straw, you know, like the kind we use for drinking nowadays 同义替换：「similar to」↔「looked like」 ### 35. · Applying paint made an unusual 35_____ and also caused lightheadness. · Applying paint made an unusual 35_____ and also caused lightheadness. **答案**：noise 原文定位：The researchers who've tried to recreate the process have said that not only is it a difficult technique to master, but also that a strange noise is produced. It also led them to feel lightheaded, so we can only imagine that these cave artists felt the same 同义替换：「made an unusual」↔「strange noise is produced」 ### 36. The importance of the symbols: · Researchers are developing a database to help identify any patterns. · The symbols are likely to be a 36_____ used by different groups. The importance of the symbols: · Researchers are developing a database to help identify any patterns. · The symbols are likely to be a 36_____ used by different groups. **答案**：code 原文定位：Although researchers don't believe that these symbols are a language as such, they are happy to call them a type of code ### 37. · A sequence of five of the symbols has been found on cave walls in Spain and on a 37_____ made from a deer`s teeth. · A sequence of five of the symbols has been found on cave walls in Spain and on a 37_____ made from a deer`s teeth. **答案**：necklace 原文定位：One sequence of five symbols is particularly common in caves in Spain;Exactly the same sequence of five symbols has been found carved into a necklace made from the teeth of a red deer ### 38. What researchers disagree about · Some researchers say the symbols were part of the “Great Leap Forward” which also included innovations such as the first 38_____ . What researchers disagree about · Some researchers say the symbols were part of the “Great Leap Forward” which also included innovations such as the first 38_____ . **答案**：boat 原文定位：One theory is called The Great Leap Forward;The idea is that around thirty-five thousand years ago, there was a sudden increase in creativity, which led to the invention of the boat, among other things 同义替换：「innovations」↔「creativity」；「the first」↔「the invention of」 ### 39. · Others say the discovery in Africa of earlier artefact such as types of 39_____ disproves the theory. · Others say the discovery in Africa of earlier artefact such as types of 39_____ disproves the theory. **答案**：arrows 原文定位：In fact, many scientists believe that what has been found in Africa seems to indicate that this increase in creativity happened much earlier;One example of an artifact that is offered to support the idea is the discovery of different sorts of arrows, which would have been used for hunting 同义替换：「disproves the theory」↔「indicate that this increase in creativity happened much earlier」；「types of」↔「sorts of」 ### 40. · It is likely that some art painted on 40_____ did not survive. · It is likely that some art painted on 40_____ did not survive. **答案**：wood 原文定位：These scientists suggest that the reason more symbols haven't been found from this earlier time is because they would have been painted on things that did not survive, such as wood --- 以上内容由鸭圈雅思真题库（www.yaquan.site）提供，收录近期雅思考试真题回忆，支持在线机考模式免费练习。