There are several American Indian groups in the Southwest that still make beautiful pottery. Some of this pottery may be sold at fairly high prices. But the makers consider their work as more than a commercial enterprise. By using methods handed down for generations, the potters express their pride in their cultural inheritance.

Some of the most interesting pottery is made by the Pueblo Indians. There are 21 individual pueblos in Arizona and New Mexico. Several are famous for their craftsmanship. To make a pot, these potters use a clay base and add long thin coils of clay to it in a spiral pattern. When they have reached the size they want, they use an implement such as a rock or shell to smooth the surfaces of the pot.

How a pot is decorated and fired depends on the traditions of the group making it. Traditional pottery produced by the Acoma, who have lived for centuries on a high mesa in New Mexico, is first painted with a clay slip. The resulting pots: which are prized for their delicacy and strength, may be left white. They may also be painted with black and white patterns or with a combination of black, orange, and brown.

Very distinctive black pottery comes from the San Ildefonso and Santa Clara pueblos. The black color is the result of carbon being released from the animal manure in which the pot is fired. Some artisans hand -rub this ware to a shiny gloss. Others cut patterns into it: resulting in a part shiny: part fiat surface. Potters at San Ildefonso make many types of wares. Potters at Santa Clara are especially known for wedding jars-jars with two necks connected by a handle.

Other groups such as the Hopi and the Cochiti also make pottery. Each group uses distinctive methods and produces distinctive forms and designs.

【练习】

1. In the first paragraph the word "commercial" means______________.

A. having to do with advertising products on TV

B. having to do with advertising products on TV

C. large- scale

D. artistic

2. The second paragraph in the passage is developed mainly through______________.

A. steps in a process

B. description of objects

C. the telling of a story

D. examples

3. The Sail Ildefonso pueblo is known for______________.

A. black pottery

B. wedding jars

C. thin and delicate shapes

D. black, brown, and orange pots

4. Traditional methods of making pottery______________.

A. are rarely used anymore

B. take a lot of time

C. are not of interest to pottery collectors

D. will soon be complete replaced

5. Another good title for this passage would be______________.

A. How to Make a Pot

B. Living on a High Mesa

C. The Indians of Arizona and New Mexico

D. An Old Art Still Practiced

【答案与题解】

1. B 前文提到一些陶器会以高价卖出，可以推测commercial在这里的意思是买卖交易。所以，答案是选项B。

2. A 第二段主要讲制作一个罐子的步骤，不是在对罐子的形态进行描述，也没有讲具体的例子或者故事。所以，答案是选项A。

3. A 第四段第一句话提到具有特色的黑色陶器是有圣伊尔德丰索部落的普韦布洛人制作的，最后一句提到圣克拉拉部落的陶器尤其以他的婚礼罐子闻名，选项C、D与题干无关，所以答案是选项A。

4. B 根据文中制作的陶器的过程可以推测出制作陶器的过程很复杂因而费时，选项A、C、D文中均有提及，故可排除。

5. D 本文主要介绍了美国本土一些印第安部落的陶器特点及制作过程。选项A过于片面，选项B、C 与文章主旨无关，因此答案是选项D。

更多职称英语考试备考资料可以参考我们网！