World Architectural Jewels = Сокровища мировой архитектуры

Н. Г. ЕГОШИНА

WORLD ARCHITECTURAL JEWELS

СОКРОВИЩА МИРОВОЙ АРХИТЕКТУРЫ

Учебное пособие

Йошкар-Ола

2023    

УДК 811.111(075.8)
ББК 81.432.1я73

Е 30

Рецензенты:

кандидат педагогических наук, доцент кафедры иностранных языков 
и лингвистики С. П. Фирсова;
кандидат педагогических наук, доцент кафедры иностранных языков 
и лингвистики О. И. Чередниченко

Печатается по решению

редакционно-издательского совета ПГТУ 

Егошина, Н. Г. 

Е 30
World Architectural Jewels = Сокровища мировой архитектуры: 

учебное пособие / Н. Г. Егошина. – Йошкар-Ола: Поволжский
государственный технологический университет, 2023. – 194 с. 
ISBN  978-5-8158-2321-1

Цель учебного пособия – обучение навыкам устного и письменного 

профессионального общения на английском языке. В книге представлено 
14 тем, освещающих различные аспекты мировой архитектуры. Все разделы имеют идентичную структуру: тексты по теме, которые сопровождаются системой послетекстовых упражнений, заданиями на отработку 
лексического материала, активной профессиональной лексикой, подлежащей заучиванию, ссылкой на электронный ресурс для просмотра видео, 
дополненное заданием на понимание услышанного.

Для аудиторной и самостоятельной работы студентов направлений 

бакалавриата 07.03.01 «Архитектурное проектирование», 08.03.01 «Промышленное и гражданское строительство»; направлений специалитета 
08.05.01 «Строительство высотных и большепролетных зданий и сооружений», 08.06.01 «Строительные конструкции, здания и сооружения».

УДК 811.111 (075.8) 

ББК 81.432.1я73

ISBN  978-5-8158-2321-1
© Егошина Н. Г., 2023 
© Поволжский государственный 

технологический университет, 2023

CONTENTS

Введение.............................................................................................4

Unit 1. Castles and Fortresses .............................................................5

Unit 2. Temples and Cathedrals ........................................................13

Unit 3. Abbeys and Monasteries........................................................21

Unit 4. Towers and Columns.............................................................29

Unit 5. Palaces and Royal Residences...............................................37

Unit 6. Hotels and Guest Houses.......................................................46

Unit 7. Skyscrapers and Business Centers.........................................55

Unit 8. Theatres and Art Venues .......................................................63

Unit 9. Museums and Art Galleries...................................................73

Unit 10. Colleges and Universities....................................................82

Unit 11. Leisure Complexes and Entertainment Centers...................92

Unit 12. Railway stations and Airports ........................................... 101

Unit 13. Bridges and Viaducts......................................................... 112

Unit 14. Metro Stations and Underground Tunnels......................... 121

Texts for Supplementary Reading................................................... 132

Vocabulary ...................................................................................... 171

Architectural Quizzes ...................................................................... 186

Bibliography.................................................................................... 192

ВВЕДЕНИЕ 

Данное учебное пособие предназначено для студентов технических 

вузов, обучающихся по направлениям 07.03.01 «Архитектурное проектирование», 08.03.01 «Промышленное и гражданское строительство», 
08.05.01 «Строительство высотных и большепролетных зданий и сооружений», 08.06.01 «Строительные конструкции, здания и сооружения». Оно также может быть рекомендовано магистрантам, научным 
работникам и специалистам, желающим повысить уровень владения 
профессиональным английским языком.

Пособие построено на базе стандарта курса иностранного языка для 

неязыковых вузов и рассчитано на профессионально ориентированный 
этап обучения. Его основная цель – способствовать формированию 
навыков общения студентов в профессиональной сфере деятельности. 

Данная цель достигается в процессе решения следующих задач: 
- совершенствование умения читать аутентичный текст професси
онального характера, используя различные стратегии чтения (просмотровое, поисковое, детальное); 

- развитие лексических навыков; 
- развитие навыков аудирования, диалогической и монологической 

речи; 

- развитие навыков перевода на материале текстов профессиональ
ной тематики.

В книге представлено 14 тем, освещающих различные аспекты ми
ровой архитектуры. Все разделы имеют идентичную структуру. Они 
включают в себя тексты по теме, которые сопровождаются системой 
послетекстовых упражнений (ответить на вопросы, определить истинность/ложность высказывания), заданиями на отработку лексического 
материала (соотнести английские и русские слова и фразы, сопоставить 
термины и их определения), активной профессиональной лексикой, 
подлежащей заучиванию, ссылкой на электронный ресурс для просмотра видео, которое сопровождается заданием на понимание услышанного 
(выбрать правильный вариант ответа). 

Предлагаемые для дополнительного чтения аутентичные тексты от
вечают динамике современного научно-технического прогресса, а также 
требованиям учебной программы по иностранному языку для студентов 
очной и заочной форм обучения высших учебных заведений технического профиля. 

Раздел «Vocabulary» включает в себя список лексических единиц, 

встречающихся в текстах и упражнениях с переводом на русский язык. 
Последний раздел «Architectural Quizzes» направлен на расширение общекультурного кругозора студентов и предполагает самостоятельную 
поисково-исследовательскую работу обучающихся.

UNIT 1

CASTLES AND FORTRESSES

1. Read the following international words and give their Russian 

equivalents: 

compromise, dictate, structure, form, excavation, procedure, barrack, 

palisade, artillery, area, cross, term, garrison, bombardment, line, 
typical, control

2. Read the following text and answer the questions after it: 

A Medieval Castle

A castle is a type of fortified structure built predominantly by nobility 

or royalty. The castles took on a great many forms with many different 
features, although some, such as curtain walls, arrow slits, portcullises 
were commonplace.

The castle was usually built on a motte. It was often artificial, 

although sometimes it incorporated a pre-existing feature of the 
landscape. The excavation of earth was made to create the mound. This 
procedure also left the a ditch, called a moat (which could be either wet or 
dry). Water moats were found in low-lying areas and were usually 
crossed by a drawbridge, although these were often replaced by stone 
bridges. “Motte” refers to the mound alone, but it was often surmounted 
by a fortified structure, such as a keep, and the flat top would be 
surrounded by a palisade. 

The castle had a fortified enclosure that was called a bailey or a ward. 

The enceinte was the castle’s main defensive enclosure, and the terms 
“bailey” and “enceinte” are linked. A castle could have several baileys 
but only one enceinte.

The bailey was the home of the rest of the lord’s household and gave 

them protection. The barracks for the garrison, stables, workshops, and 
storage facilities were often found in the bailey.

A keep or a donjon was a great tower and usually the most strongly 

defended point of a castle. Curtain walls were defensive walls enclosing 
a bailey. They had to be high enough to make scaling the walls with 
ladders difficult and thick enough to withstand bombardment from siege 
engines which, from the 15th century onwards, included gunpowder
artillery. A typical wall could be 3 m thick and 12 m tall, although sizes 
varied greatly between castles. To protect them from undermining, 
curtain walls were sometimes given a stone skirt around their bases. 
Walkways along the tops of the curtain walls allowed defenders to rain 
missiles on enemies below, and battlements gave them further protection. 
Curtain walls were studded with towers to allow enfilading fire along the 
wall. Arrow slits in the walls did not become common in Europe until the 
13th century, for fear that they might compromise the wall’s strength.  

The entrance was often the weakest part in a circuit of defence. To 

overcome this, the gatehouse was developed, allowing those inside the 
castle to control the flow of traffic. In earth and timber castles, the 
gateway was usually the first feature to be rebuilt in stone. The front of 
the gateway was a blind spot and to overcome this, projecting towers 
were added on each side of the gate. During the 13th and 14th centuries 
the barbican was developed. This consisted of a rampart, ditch, and 
possibly a tower, in front of the gatehouse, which could be used to further 
protect the entrance. The purpose of a barbican was not just to provide 
another line of defence but also to dictate the only approach to the gate.

It is necessary to mention, that in the course of time, castles became 

gradually less fortified and more convenient to live in. By and by they 
turned into luxurious palaces and manors. 

1. Was a medieval castle usually a private shelter?
2. Where was a castle built as a rule?
3. Was it a several-component structure?
4. What was the weakest point of this kind of fortification?
5. Was a medieval castle a convenient place to live in?

3. Learn the following words and expressions: 

1. a fortified structure
укрепленное сооружение

2. a mound/motte
насыпь/холм

3. a moat/a ditch
ров (с водой) / канава

4. a keep/donjon
главная башня

5. a bailey
двор замка

6. an enceinte
крепостная ограда

7. a battlement
зубчатая стена

8. an arrow slit
узкое окно / прорезь для метания 
стрел / бойница

9. a gatehouse
сторожка у ворот

10. a projecting tower
башня для метания стрел/ядер

11. a palisade
частокол

12. a rampart
крепостной вал

13. portcullises
опускная решетка (в крепостных 
воротах)

14. a barbican
навесная башня

15. the entrance
вход

16. the only approach
единственный подход

17. a drawbridge
подъемный мост

4. Match the verbs in the left column with their Russian 

equivalents in the right one: 

1. to withstand
a. подниматься/взбираться

2. to allow
b. преодолевать

3. to consist 
c. разрешать/позволять

4. to protect
d. обеспечивать

5. to overcome / to surmount
e. оборонять

6. to provide
f. защищать

7. to take on
g. выдерживать

8. to undermine
h. брать, принимать

9. to scale
i. подвергать риску

10. to compromise
j. подкапывать / делать подкоп

11. to surround
k. состоять из

12. to defend
l. окружать / обступать

5. Match the following words with their definitions:

1. a bailey
a. a defensive wall enclosing a bailey

2. a keep
b. a fortified enclosure

3. a curtain wall
c. a defensive wall, made from iron or wooden 
stakes, or tree trunks, and used as a defensive 
structure or enclosure

4. portcullises
d. a defensive architecture, a cogged or jagged 
wall with merlons at certain intervals

5. murder holes
e. a great tower, the most strongly defended point 
of a castle

6. a rampart
f. a heaped pile of earth, gravel, sand, rocks

7. a palisade
g. an iron or wooden grille

8. a battlement
h. a construction that can quickly be raised from 
within to deny entry to an enemy force

9. a mound
i. openings in the ceiling of the gateway 
passage that were used to pour boiling oil or 
molten lead on attackers

10. a drawbridge
j. a wall forming part of the defensive boundary 
of a castle, that is usually broad-topped and made 
of excavated earth

6. Match the phrases in the left column with their Russian 

equivalents in the right one: 

1. a timber castle
a. подвергать риску прочность стены

2. to provide another line of 
defence

b. контролировать поток движения

3. to compromise the wall’s 
strength

c. деревянный замок

4. to become common
d. слабое место (не просматриваемое)

5. a blind spot
e. обеспечивать дополнительную 
линию обороны

6. to rain missiles
f. плоский верх

7. a stone skirt around the 
bases

g. осыпать метательными снарядами

8. a flat top
h. цепь / линия обороны

9. to control the flow of 
traffic

i. становиться обычным

10. a circuit of defence
j. каменная юбка (укрепление) 
в основании

7. Read the following statements and decide if they are true or false: 

1. A medieval castle was built for safe and secure life.
2. A medieval castle included a certain number of specific fortifications.
3. The gate was often the weakest part in a circuit of defence.
4. The castle was usually surrounded by a thick forest.
5. The architecture of a castle varied from place to place and depended on 
the landlord’s taste.

8. Renderthe text «A Medieval Castle» in English (5-7 sentences). 

9. Look through the text and render it in Russian.

Ireland’s Castles

Ireland’s castles are proud defenders of Irish history. If walls could 

speak these castles would tell us of thrilling adventures, brave battles, 
daring sieges and cunning exploits. They would tell us tales of clans and 
families, noble lords, formidable ladies and some unwelcome occupiers.  
Let’s read some stories of these architectural masterpieces.

Guarding a strategic ford on the Clarin River is the monumental bulk 

of Athenry Castle. The imposing three-storey hall-keep survives from the 
mid-thirteenth century. It is solidly impressive from the outside, although 
the interior was simply built, containing only a hall at first-floor level and 

dark storerooms below. Despite the simplicity of the layout, fine carvings 
bear witness to the hall’s eminence. The doorway and two of the window 
openings are decorated with floral motifs in the remarkable local School 
of the West style. The battlements, through whose tall arrow-loops the 
castle was defended against various attackers across the centuries, are 
original.  

Cahir Castle is one of Ireland’s largest and best-preserved castles. It 

stands proudly on a rocky island on the River Suir. The castle was built in 
the thirteenth century and served as the stronghold of the powerful Butler 
family. So effective was its design that it was believed to be impregnable, 
but it finally fell to the earl of Essex in 1599 when heavy artillery was 
used against it for the first time. Listowel Castle stands on an elevation 
overlooking the River Feale, above the location of a strategic ford. 
Although only half of the building survives, it is still one of Kerry’s best 
examples of Anglo-Norman architecture. Only two of the original four 
square towers, standing over 15 metres high, remain. The towers are 
united by a curtain wall of the same height and linked together –
unusually – by an arch on one side. Trim Castle is the largest AngloNorman fortification in Ireland. Hugh de Lacy and his successors took 
30 years to build it. The central fortification is a monumental three-storey 
keep. This massive 20-sided tower, which is cruciform in shape, was all 
but impregnable in its day. It was protected by a ditch, curtain wall and 
water-filled moat. Modern walkways now allow you to look down over 
the interior of the keep – a chance to appreciate the sheer size and 
thickness of the mighty castle walls.

10. Watch the video «Windsor Castle» and choose the right 

variant.   The video is available at:   
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qxierscJIVM
1. Windsor Castle today is...

a. inhabited
b. uninhabited
c. destroyed
d. half-reconstructed

2. Windsor Castle has history that lasts for...

a. a hundred years
c. a decade of years    

b. a thousand years
d. a couple of centuries