She is widely seen as proof that good looks can last forever. But, at nearly 500 years of age, time is catching up with the Mona Lisa.
The health of the famous picture, painted by Leonardo da Vinci in 1505, is getting worse by the year, according to the Louvre museum(卢浮宫博物馆)where it is housed.
“The thin, wooden panel on which the Mona Lisa is painted in oil has changed shape since experts checked it two years ago,” the museum said. Visitors have noticed the changes but repairing the world’s most famous painting is not easy. Experts are not sure about the materials the Italian artist used and their current chemical state.
Nearly 6 million people go to see the Mona Lisa every year, many attracted by the mystery of her smile. “It is very interesting that when you’re not looking at her, she seems to be smiling, and then you look at her and she stops,” said Professor Margaret Livingstone of Harvard University. “It’s because direct vision(视觉)is excellent at picking up detail, but less suited to looking at shadows. Da Vinci painted the smile in shadows.”
However, the actual history of the Mona Lisa is just as mysterious as the smile. Da Vinci himself loved it so much that he always carried it with him, until it was eventually sold to France’s King Francis I in 1519.
In 1911, the painting was stolen from the Louvre by a former employee, who took it out of the museum hidden under his coat. He said he planned to return it to Italy. The painting was sent back to France two years later.
During World War II, French hid the painting in small towns to keep it out of the hands of German forces.
Like many old ladies, the Mona Lisa has some interesting stories to tell.
【小题1】 The underlined sentence in the first paragraph means the Mona Lisa ________.

A．is losing its value	B．is being damaged after so many years
C．is getting more valuable with years passing	D．will rot away

【小题2】 Experts haven’t any repairs on the Mona Lisa because______.
1.      

A．it is now in a poor chemical state 2.

B．they don’t know how to replace the wooden panel 3.

C．they don’t have the materials Da Vinci used 4.

D．they are afraid it will be done further damage.

【小题3】The smile of the Mona Lisa can only be seen_______.

A．by indirect vision	B．at a distance
C．by direct vision	D．in shadows

【小题4】 From the last paragraph, we can infer that______.

A．many interesting stories have been written about the Mona Lisa

B．people are interested in the stories about the Mona Lisa.

C．some mysteries still remain to be solved about the Mona Lisa.

D．Many more stories will be told about the Mona Lisa.

The Louvre Museum is one of the largest, oldest, most important and famous museum in the world. It is famous for holding several of the world’s most valuable works of art. Its collections’ number is over 380,000 objects, though not one of the world’s largest collections, arguably one of the finest. The art treasures of the Louvre Museum cover 5,000 years and are displayed in over 10 kilometers of galleries. The oldest artifact in the museum is 9,000 years old. Mona Lisa(1503-1506), painted by the Italian artist Leonardo da Vinci. The artist’s use of very deep space in the background with a half-length portrait is typical of Renaissance painting style. This painting hangs in the Louvre, Paris. It is one of the most famous collections in the Louvre.
On November 8th, 1793, the Louvre was opened as a public museum.
It is open from 9 am to 6 pm all days except Tuesdays. The entrance fee is 7.5 before 3 pm. It is free under 18 years old. The Louvre Museum in Paris had a record number of visitors in 2005. About 7.3 million people visited the art museum in 2005.
【小题1】 After reading the first paragraph, we can come to the conclusion that ____.

A．The Louvre Museum is the only largest, oldest, most important and famous museum in the world

B．The Louvre Museum has the world’s largest collections

C．The oldest artifact is over 9,000 years old

D．The Louvre Museum is priceless

【小题2】Which of the following statements is true?

A．Mona Lisa is typical of Renaissance painting.

B．Mona Lisa is painted by a Canadian.

C．Light space in the background is used in Mona Lisa.

D．All the above.

【小题3】 Which of the following statements leads us to the conclusion that The Louvre Museum is popular?

A．The art treasures of the Louvre Museum cover 5,000 years.

B．It is famous for holding several of the world’s most valuable works of art.

C．The Louvre Museum in Paris had a record number of visitors in 2005.

D．The entrance fee is 7.5 before 3 pm.

She is widely seen as proof that good looks can last for ever. But, at nearly 500 years of age, time is catching up with the Mona Lisa.

The health of the famous picture, painted by Leonardo da Vinci in 1505, is getting worse by the year, according to the Louver Museum(卢浮宫) where it is housed.

“The thin, wooden panel on which the Mona Lisa is painted in oil has changed shape since experts checked it two years ago,” the museum said. Visitors have noticed changes but repairing the world’s most famous painting is not easy. Experts are not sure about the materials the Italian artist used and their current chemical state.

Nearly 6 million people go to see the Mona Lisa every year, many attracted by the mystery of her smile. “It is very interesting that when you’re not looking at her, she seems to be smiling, and then you look at her and she stops,” said Professor Margaret Livingstone of Harvard University. “It’s because direct vision(视觉) is excellent at picking up details, but less suited to looking at shadows. Da Vinci painted the smile in shadows.”

However, the actual history of the Mona Lisa is just as mysterious as the smile. Da Vinci himself loved it so much that he always carried it with him, until it was eventually sold to France’s King Francis I in 1519.  

In 1911, the painting was stolen from the Louver by a former employee, who took it out of the museum, hidden under his coat. He said he planned to return it to Italy. The painting was sent back to France two years later. During World War Ⅱ, French hid the painting in small towns to keep it out of the hands of German forces.

We can infer from the text that_______

A. the Mona Lisa is proved to be able to last another 500 years

B. Mona Lisa’s beauty is fading gradually with 500 years passing by

C. the Mona Lisa has been catching people’s wide attention in the past 500 years

D. Mona Lisa does not look out of date though painted 500 years ago

Which of the following is true about the Mona Lisa?

A. It was once taken away and hidden up by German forces.

B. Its painter himself loved it greatly and always kept it in a shade.

C. Mona Lisa stops smiling when you look at her wanting to see her smiles.

D. King Francis I bought it and then returned it to Italy.

Choose the right order about the happenings onto Mona Lisa.

a. It was stolen from the Louver.

b. Its painter sold it to King Francis I

c. Its state of health was checked.

d. It was returned to France and housed in the Louver Museum.

e. It was hidden and protected against Germans.

A. b-a-d-e-c       B. d-e-c-b-a        C. d-a-e-c-b       D. b-c-a-d-e

It may add to the difficulty in repairing the painting that_____.

A. experts haven’t noticed changes in its shape as visitors do

B. it is likely to be stolen again when it’s under repair

C. it is uncertain which country, Italy of France, should take charge

D. experts aren’t sure about the materials and the chemical state of its oil paint

The following is a timetable in Shanghai Pudong International Airport．

Airline	Flight Number	Destination	Departure	Gate
Air Canada	137	Beijing	10:12 a．m．	24
Japanese Airlines	320	Tokyo	10:30 a．m．	18
British Airways	405	Paris	11:00 a．m．	20
Pan American	226	London	11:20 a．m．	12
Pan American	12	Beijing	11:43 a．m．	15
Air Canada	178	Tokyo	12:32 a．m．	21
CAAC	289	Hong Kong	12:32 a．m．	14
CAAC	314	Moscow	12:45 a．m．	18
British Airways	230	New York	12:55 a．m．	23

【小题1】 A man wants to take Flight 178 to Tokyo. Which gate should he go to?

A．14

B．28

C．21

D．18

【小题2】Lisa is at gate 23. Where is she going?

A．Paris

B．Beijing

C．Tokyo

D．New York

【小题3】Now it’s 10:40. Mary is at gate 20. Which airline’s plane will she take?

A．British Airways	B．Japanese Airlines
C．Pan American	D．Air Canada

【小题4】Gate _______ is the busiest among all these gates.

A．23

B．18

C．24

D．15

From early times, man has been interested in art. People have often worked together to collect and save the world’s art treasures.

Fine art treasures from many countries are kept in an art museum called the Louvre (卢浮宫) in Paris, France. The works of art have been collected by the people of France over many centuries.

The Louvre has not always been a museum. The first building was a fort (要塞)with high walls and a round tower. It had a moat (护城河) to keep out the enemies. Over the years, the number of buildings around the fort grew. By 1350,the fort was no longer needed and became a palace home for French kings and queens.

 During times of peace, new treasures were brought in. During times of war, many treasures were stolen, and the buildings were damaged(毁损).

When Francis I became King of France in the year of 1515,he brought in artists from many countries, and one of them was Leonardo da Vinci from Italy, whose Mona Lisa is the best-known painting in the museum today.

 In 1793, the Louvre became a public museum, just as it is now. It is a place where art treasures have been saved for everyone to enjoy.

The above passage is about        

A. the world-famous painting Mona Lisa  

B. a king of France by the name of Francis I

C. a grand art museum in the capital of France 

D. an artist named Leonardo da Vinci

It seems to be necessary for great art works to be kept in public museum because     .

A. only in this way will they not be stolen     

B. it gives everyone a chance to enjoy them

C. it helps people to remember the life of French kings and queens

D. it tells people what meaningful work the French kings did in the past

The Louver became an art museum         

A. in the year of 1350                

B. in 1515 when Francis I became King of France   

C. in the seventeenth century            

D. in the nineties of the eighteenth century

Though the story does not say so, it makes you think         

A. lots of people pay visits to the Louvre

B. Leonardo da Vinci was once the keeper of the museum

C. the Louvre was only open to the artists from other countries

D. the Louvre became a public museum at the beginning of the last century