Archaeologists working in the buried Roman city of Pompeii say they have uncovered a “sorcerer’s treasure trove” of objects, including good-luck charms, mirrors and glass beads. Catherine and Neil teach you the language the world’s media is using to discuss this story.
The story
Archaeologists in the Roman city of Pompeii have discovered a treasure trove of good luck charms and fertility amulets that they think may have been used for casting spells by a Roman sorcerer. Among the articles discovered were scarab beetles from the Middle East made of amethyst.
Key words and phrases
treasure trove
large number of valuable objects found hidden
• Amateur archaeologists sometimes get lucky and discover treasure troves.
• There’s a treasure trove of biscuits in Rob’s drawer.
cache
quantity of hidden things
• Anti-terror police discovered a weapons cache in the basement of a house.
• If your computer is slow, you can try clearing the cache.
unearthed
found hidden after a search
• They unearthed the treasure buried in someone’s garden.
• Investigative journalists try to unearth the truth.
Language challenge
Which is the odd one out?
a) sorcerer
b) wizard
c) witch
For the answer, watch this on our website: https://www.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/english/course/newsreview/unit-11/session-111