Auctions are public sales of goods, conducted by an officially approved auctioneer. He asks the crowd assembled in the auction-room to make offers, or “bids”, for the various items on sale. He encourages buyers to bid higher figures and finally names the highest bidder as the buyer of the goods. This is called “knocking down” the goods, for the bidding ends when the auctioneer bangs a small hammer on a table at which he stands. This is often set on a raised platform called a rostrum.
The ancient Romans probably invented sales by auction, and the English word comes from the Latin audio, meaning “increase”. The Romans usually sold in this way the spoils taken in war; these sales were called sub hasta, meaning “under the spear”, a spear being stuck in the ground as a signal for a crowd to gather. In England in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, goods were often sold “by the candle”: a short candle was lit by the auctioneer, and bids could be made while it stayed alight.
Practically all goods whose qualities vary are sold by auction. Among these are coffee, hides, skins, wool, tea, cocoa, furs, spices, fruit and vegetables and wines. Auction sales are also usual for land and property, antique furniture, pictures, rare books, old china and similar works of art. The auction-rooms at Christie’s and Sotheby’s in London and New York are world-famous.
An auction is usually advertised beforehand with full particulars of the articles to be sold and where and when they can be viewed by prospective buyers. If the advertisement cannot give full details, catalogues are printed, and each group of goods to be sold together, called a “lot”, is usually given a number. The auctioneer need not begin with Lot 1 and continue in numerical order; he may wait until he registers the fact that certain dealers are in the room and then produce the lots they are likely to be interested in. The auctioneer’s services are paid for in the form of a percentage of the price the goods are sold for. The auctioneer therefore has a direct interest in pushing up the bidding as high as possible.
1.Why is the end of the bidding called “knocking down”?
2.The Romans used to sell by auction（ ） .
3.A candle used to burn at auction sales（ ） .
4.The auctioneer may decide to sell the “lots” out of the order because （ ）.
问题1选项
A.Because the auctioneer knocks the buyer down.
B.Because the auctioneer knocks the rostrum down.
C.Because the goods are knocked down on to the table.
D.Because the auctioneer bangs the table with a hammer.
问题2选项
A.spoilt goods
B.old worn-out weapons
C.property taken from the enemy
D.spears
问题3选项
A.because they took place at night
B.as a signal for the crowd to gather
C.to keep the auctioneer warm
D.to limit the time when offers could be made
问题4选项
A.he sometimes wants to confuse the buyers
B.he knows from experience that certain people will want to buy certain items
C.he wants to keep certain people waiting
D.he wants to reduce the number of buyers
第1题:
1.【选项释义】
1. Why is the end of the bidding called “knocking down”? 1. 为什么拍卖结束被称为“knocking down”？
A. Because the auctioneer knocks the buyer down. A. 因为拍卖师会把买家击倒。
B. Because the auctioneer knocks the rostrum down. B. 因为拍卖人会把桌子砸倒。
C. Because the goods are knocked down on to the table. C. 因为货物被撞到桌子上了。
D. Because the auctioneer bangs the table with a hammer. D. 因为拍卖人用锤子敲桌子。
【考查点】事实细节题。
【解题思路】根据关键词knocking down定位至第一段倒数第二句“这就是所谓的‘knocking down’商品，因为当拍卖师用小锤子敲打他面前的桌子时，竞价就结束了”，可知，拍卖结束被称为knocking down是因为拍卖结束时拍卖师会用小锤子敲打他面前的桌子，D项正确。
【干扰项排除】A项“因为拍卖师会把买家击倒”、B项“因为拍卖人会把桌子砸倒”和C项“因为货物被撞到桌子上了”根据解题思路可知，这三项属于曲解原文。
第2题:
2.【选项释义】
2. The Romans used to sell by auction ______. 2. 罗马人过去通过拍卖来出售______。
A. spoilt goods A. 损坏的货物
B. old worn-out weapons B. 老旧武器
C. property taken from the enemy C. 从敌人手中夺取的战利品
D. spears D. 矛
【考查点】事实细节题。
【解题思路】根据第二段第二句“罗马人通常以这种方式出售他们在战争中获得的战利品（the spoils taken in war）”，可知，罗马人过去通过拍卖来出售战争中获得的战利品，C项正确。
【干扰项排除】
A项“损坏的货物”和B项“老旧武器”原文没有提及，无中生有；
D项“矛”是人群聚集的信号，不是拍卖的物品，属于张冠李戴。
第3题:
3.【选项释义】
3. A candle used to burn at auction sales ______. 3. 在拍卖会上，人们点着蜡烛，______。
A. because they took place at night A. 因为拍卖是在晚上进行的
B. as a signal for the crowd to gather B. 作为群众聚集的信号
C. to keep the auctioneer warm C. 为了给拍卖师保暖
D. to limit the time when offers could be made D. 限制提出报价的时间
【考查点】推理判断题。
【解题思路】根据题干定位至第二段最后一句“在18世纪和19世纪的英国，商品通常是‘通过蜡烛’出售的：拍卖师点燃一支短蜡烛，然后在蜡烛点着的时候出价”，可知，在拍卖会中人们点上蜡烛，然后在它燃着的时候出价，也就是说，蜡烛熄灭，报价就停止了。说明蜡烛是用来限制报价的时间的。D项符合题意。
【干扰项排除】
A项“因为拍卖是在晚上进行的”和C项“为了给拍卖师保暖”在文中没有提及，属于无中生有；
B项“作为群众聚集的信号”，根据第二段第二句“……一根矛被插在地上，作为人群聚集的信号”可知，矛才是群众聚集的信号，该项张冠李戴。
第4题:
4.【选项释义】
4. The auctioneer may decide to sell the “lots” out of the order because ______. 4. 拍卖人可能会决定出售这些“拍品”，因为______。
A. he sometimes wants to confuse the buyers A. 他有时想迷惑买家
B. he knows from experience that certain people will want to buy certain items B. 根据他的经验，他知道某些人会想买某些东西
C. he wants to keep certain people waiting C. 他想让某些人久等
D. he wants to reduce the number of buyers D. 他想减少买家的数量
【考查点】推理判断题。
【解题思路】第一段第三句提到“拍卖人不需要从第一件拍品开始，然后按数字顺序继续；他可能会一直等着直到他登记的某些经销商到达房间之后，才会出示他们可能感兴趣的物品”，这也就是说，拍卖人拍卖物品是根据经销商对物品的感兴趣程度来的，B项“根据他的经验，他知道某些人会想买某些东西”符合题意。
【干扰项排除】A项“他有时想迷惑买家”、C项“他想让某些人久等”和D项“他想减少买家的数量”在原文没有依据，属于无中生有。
