发现伦敦的历史
Discovering London's history
Hidden, buried beneath the bustling streets of London, this ice well, was once one of the largest of its kind
十分隐蔽，埋藏在伦敦熙熙攘攘的街道下面，这个冰井曾是同类井中最大的一个
- storing and supplying ice to the whole capital.
为整个首都储存和供应冰。
It was built in the 1780s.
这个冰井建于1780年代。
Originally, the ice well was used to store ice sourced locally and that would have come from rivers and canals and it was pretty disgusting.
最初，冰井用来储存来自当地的冰块，这些冰块来自河流和运河，比较脏。
There was whatever you can imagine that was floating in a river or canal could have easily ended up in this ice house.
你能想到的任何漂浮在河里或运河里的东西很容易就会进入到这个冰井里。
But in the 1820s, William Leftwich took over the ice well.
但在1920年代，威廉·莱夫特维奇接管了冰井。
He imported his ice from Norway and it was much better quality ice.
他从挪威进口冰块，质量要好得多。
And it became big business here in the capital.
这也成为了当时首都的一个相当赚钱的行业。
After being transported up the Regent's Canal, the large chunks of ice would have been brought into this egg-shaped well, 9.5 metres deep and 7.5 metres wide.
在被运送到摄政运河后，大块的冰会被带进这个9.5米深，7.5米宽的蛋形井中。
When it was ready, it would've been taken to the top and distributed across London.
在一切就绪后，冰会被送到井顶，然后分发到伦敦的各个角落。
It was sold off to the local landowners, who wanted to come and buy a bit of ice, before the days of refrigerators as we know them.
这些冰被卖给了当地的土地所有人，他们想来这里买一些冰，这是在冰箱出现以前。
And the local landowners would buy it, or it was used for medical use, and people would come along and just buy a small portion.
当地的土地所有人会买冰，也有其他人买冰用作医用，也有人会过来买上一点冰。
And that wasn't its only use.
这并不是唯一的用途。
It was also sold to butchers, fishmongers, restaurants, and for people entertaining.
冰也被卖给了屠夫、鱼商、餐馆，也被人们在招待客人时使用。
What we recognise today as a sorbet - they very popular.
我们如今认识的冰糕非常受欢迎。
It was a way of entertaining your guests with something that was previously only really affordable by the aristocracy.
它是一种款待客人的甜品，以前只有贵族才能买得起。
But now, because of the large commercial ice well, that more people are able to access that little luxury.
但现在，有了巨大的商业冰井，越来越多的人能够享受到这种小小的奢侈。
It managed to survive the Blitz and was rediscovered during recent developments.
这个冰井在二战伦敦大轰炸中幸存下来，并在近年来的房地产开发中被重新发现。
It's hoped that it will be open to the public via a new viewing corridor by next year.
这个冰井有望在明年通过一条新的观景走廊向公众开放。
But in the meantime, this unique historical site contains only echoes of the past.
但在此之前，这一独特的历史遗址只留有昔日的回声。