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Over the years, hundreds, if not thousands, of priceless cultural and historical artifacts(手工艺品) have been stolen. They usually end up in the hands of greedy collectors or museums. Though most of these stolen artifacts remain lost, many have been recovered and returned to their rightful homes.
Christopher Columbus is considered the most famous explorer in history. In 1493, he wrote an eight－page letter to King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain, who supported his historic voyage across the Atlantic Ocean in 1492. The letter, which was written in Latin, told Columbus’ first impressions of Cuba and Hispaniola.
The historic letter was stolen from a library in Florence, Italy, in 1950. There was an excellent copy where the original letter was placed, so the staff didn’t notice that the real document was stolen and none of the public knew that. The priceless artifact appeared again in 1990 when it was bought by a collector in Switzerland. In 1992, it was sold in New York for $400，000. In 2004, it landed in the U．S.Library of Congress. It was only in 2016 that the 500－year－old document was returned to Italy.
In 2012, several figurines(小雕像) were caught at the John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City. The priceless artifacts were displayed in the Nigerian National Museum, but they mysteriously disappeared later.
The 2，000－year－old figurines were created by the Nok people, an ancient culture that lived in Nigeria more than 2，000 years ago. What a surprise it is to find them again！“One feature of the recovered figurines is that each one has a distinctive(与众不同的) face.” Habib Baba Habu, who served as Nigeria’s consul general during the time of the recovery, explained that this was typical of Nok sculpture. According to him, Nok artists used the figurines to describe their riding horses or donkeys or using farming tools.
【解题导语】 本文是一篇说明文。近年来有很多珍贵的历史文物被盗，通过努力也追回了一些，本文介绍了其中两件。
1．Who have got many stolen artifacts over the years?
A．Library staff.
B．Greedy thieves.
C．Museum directors.
D．Artifacts collectors.
D 解析：细节理解题。根据第一段的They usually end up in the hands of greedy collectors or museums.可知，被盗取的文物有的落在了一些文物收藏者手中。
2．What can we learn from Paragraph 2?
A．The origin of Columbus’ letter.
B．The search for Columbus’ letter.
C．The process of Columbus’ voyage.
D．The reasons for Columbus’ being famous.
A 解析：推理判断题。根据第二段的In 1493, he wrote an eight－page letter to King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain...可知，本段讲述了被盗走的那封信的由来。
3．Why did no one know the letter was stolen?
A．Because it was replaced by a copy.
B．Because it was put at a hidden place.
C．Because the staff were busy with other things.
D．Because the staff hid the facts from the public.
A 解析：细节理解题。根据第三段的There was an excellent copy where the original letter was placed, so the staff didn’t notice that the real document was stolen and none of the public knew that.可知，那封信被另一封高仿信取代了，所以没有人发现它被盗了。
4．What can we know about Nok people?
A．They helped set up Nigeria.
B．They stole some priceless artifacts.
C．They lived in Nigeria a thousand years ago.
D．They got inspiration for figurines from their life.
D 解析：推理判断题。根据末段的According to him, Nok artists used the figurines to describe their riding horses or donkeys or using farming tools.可知，诺克人从生活中获得灵感，制作小雕像。
