V. M. 希利尔（仲秋　译）

This story begins with a competition. Not a competition to see who could run fastest， not a competition to see who could whistle loudest， but a much harder one. It was such a hard competition that each man in it was given a year in which to try to win.

It was a competition in sculpture. It began this way： In Florence， Italy， there is a little eight-sided building called the Baptistery. A baptistery is a place where babies， or even grown-ups， are baptized. This building has four doorways in it and one of these doorways at the time of the competition had a very beautiful pair of bronze doors with reliefs on them made by the sculptor Andrea Pisano. Long after Andrea Pisanos death the men of Florence decided there should be another pair of bronze doors for one of the other doorways.

There were several good sculptors living then and the men of Florence could not decide who was the best one to make the new doors， and so they had the competition. These were the rules：

這个故事开始于一场比赛。这场比赛不是比谁跑得最快，也不是比谁口哨吹得最响，它要比这些都难得多。这场比赛非常难，每个参赛者都被给予一年的时间参加这场比赛并赢得比赛。

这是一场雕刻比赛。这场比赛的起因是这样的：在意大利的佛罗伦萨有一座不是很大的八边形建筑，叫作“洗礼堂”——也就是婴儿或者成人接受洗礼的地方。这座洗礼堂有四道门，其中一道门在比赛前就已经有两扇十分漂亮的铜门安放好了，铜门上是安德里亚·皮萨诺雕刻的浮雕。安德里亚·皮萨诺去世很久之后，佛罗伦萨人决定在与那道铜门相对的另外一道门上，也安装这样的两扇铜门。

那个时候的佛罗伦萨已经出现了很多杰出的雕塑家，人们不知道到底让谁来做这道新的铜门更好，于是他们决定进行一场比赛，比赛规则如下：

Each sculptor had to make a relief in bronze to go on a door.

The relief had to be about Abraham and Isaac.

Each sculptor could have a year for the work and then a group of thirty-four judges would decide the winner and the winner would make the doors.

All the sculptors set to work. All， except one， very carefully kept every one else from seeing their work until the year was up. This one was named Lorenzo Ghiberti （Geebeartee）， and he worked and worked and then he asked his friends to come in and tell him how he could make his relief better. Then he worked some more until he had a very beautiful relief indeed.

When the year was up， each sculptor brought his relief to the judges. And what do you think？ The judges couldnt decide which was the very best！ There was a tie for first place. One of the winners was Ghibertis relief. The other was cast by the famous architect Brunelleschi （Brew-nel-lesskee）. But Brunelleschi himself thought Ghibertis relief was better than his own and so he very generously said he would withdraw and let Ghiberti be the winner. Then the judges said Ghiberti could make the doors.

Ghiberti set to work. He worked and worked. One year， two years， five years， ten years， and still he worked on the doors. Youll hardly believe how long it took to make them. Ill tell you the date when he began and when he finished. He started to work on the reliefs in 1403. He finished the doors in 1424.

每个参赛的雕塑家必须用青铜雕刻一幅与铜门搭配的浮雕。

浮雕的主题和内容必须与亚伯拉罕、以撒（他们都是《圣经·旧约》之《圣经创世记》中的人物，以撒是亚伯拉罕和妻子撒拉所生的唯一儿子）有关。

每位雕塑家都有一年时间来雕刻，最后由34名裁判共同裁决谁才是最后的胜出者，并由胜出者来雕刻这两扇门。

比赛开始后，所有参加比赛的雕塑家都开始了雕刻，而且他们都小心地隐藏着自己创作的作品，在比赛结束日之前不想让任何人看到。不过，有一个人却特立独行，这个人叫洛伦佐·吉贝尔蒂。他先自己专心地雕刻了一段时间，然后将他的朋友们邀请到他家里参观他的雕刻作品，并请朋友们提出一些改进的建议。接着，他就按照大家的建议不断完善他的作品直到他雕刻出十分漂亮的浮雕。

一年的雕刻比赛时间结束后，每位参加比赛的雕塑家都展出了自己的作品，请裁判评判。你认为结果如何？结果是裁判也无法评出谁的浮雕最好！两位雕塑家的作品同时被评为第一名。一件是吉贝尔蒂的浮雕，另一件作品是意大利著名建筑师菲利波·布鲁内莱斯基雕刻的。但是布鲁内莱斯基认为吉贝尔蒂的作品比自己的更胜一筹。所以他十分客气地退出了竞争，将冠军的称号让给了吉贝尔蒂。于是，裁判宣布吉贝尔蒂荣获了雕刻洗礼堂那两扇新门的殊荣。

于是吉贝尔蒂开始了他的雕刻工作。他不懈怠地雕刻着，一年过去了，两年过去了，五年过去了，十年过去了……吉贝尔蒂还在雕刻那两扇铜门。你完全无法想象雕刻完成最终花费的时间。让我来告诉你吉贝尔蒂从开始着手雕刻到最后完成的日期：他从1403年开始雕刻，最终在1424年完成了他的作品。

“What！” you say. “Twenty-one years to make one pair of doors？ That is a long time！”

Finally the doors were finished and put in the Baptistery. They opened down the middle and had twenty-eight panels or scenes in relief， chiefly from the life of Christ. Each scene was made separately and then all fitted together.

Ghibertis doors “made a big hit”. Every one liked them so much that the men of Florence asked the sculptor if he would make another pair of bronze doors for another doorway to the Baptistery. There was no need for a competition this time. They knew Ghiberti was the man for the job.

Ghiberti started on the new doors. He worked and worked and worked. One year， two years， five years， ten years， twenty years， and still he worked on the doors. He began on these doors in 1425. He finished them in 1452. What！ Twenty-seven years to make one set of doors？ That is a long time！

But this time， when he had finished， the doors were so splendid that many people said they were perfect. A famous sculptor saw them and said， “They are fit to be the gates of Paradise，” and that is what they have been called ever since—the Gates of Paradise.

The Gates of Paradise have ten scenes from the Old Testament. Here is a “close-up” of the fourth scene showing the story of Abraham.

“什么？”你肯定會说，“雕刻一道门居然花了二十一年？那时间也太长了吧！”

最后，铜门的雕刻工作总算完成了，并被细致地安装到了洗礼堂的门框上。铜门从中间打开，上面雕刻了二十八幅浮雕图，主要讲述了耶稣的生平故事。每幅浮雕图都是单独雕刻的，单幅雕刻完成后再将所有浮雕拼接起来。

吉贝尔蒂雕刻的这两扇铜门取得了巨大的成功。佛罗伦萨人都十分喜欢这一道铜门，所以他们征询吉贝尔蒂是否愿意再为洗礼堂的另一道门雕刻一对类似的铜门。这次自然就没有必要再比赛一次了，因为他们绝对相信吉贝尔蒂是不二人选。

吉贝尔蒂接下了这份工作，又开始了他的雕刻历程。他不停地刻啊刻，一年过去了，两年过去了，五年过去了，十年过去了，二十年过去了……吉贝尔蒂还在雕刻第二道门的两扇铜门。吉贝尔蒂从1425年开始着手雕刻，直到1452年才完成了这道铜门。天啊！雕刻一道铜门花了二十七年，真是够久的啊！

不过新铜门完成之时，人们都觉得那个作品简直太棒了，上面的雕刻堪称完美。有个著名的雕塑家见到这道门后，惊叹道：“它们简直就是天堂之门啊！”于是在那以后，这对铜门便被人们称为“天堂之门”。

“天堂之门”上面有十幅浮雕图，刻画的都是《圣经·旧约》中的场景。上面这张照片就是铜门上第四幅浮雕的放大图，这幅浮雕讲述的是亚伯拉罕的故事。

Word Study

withdraw /w??'dr??/ v. 退出;离开

His withdrew from the race on the second lap.

splendid /'splend?d/ adj. 极佳的;非常好的

Weve all had a splendid time.