Palladium
雅典娜神像

When Ilus had first built his new seat, the city of Troy, he prayed Zeus to show some sign of blessing for it. His prayer was heard, and a wooden image of Pallas (Athena) fell from heaven to within the walls of the city. Known as the Palladium, the statue afforded the city safety and protection. At religious meetings of the goddess, it was carried through the city streets amid joys and songs of praise.
当伊拉斯最初建造特洛伊城时，他祈求宙斯赐福于这座城市。宙斯听到了他的祈求，随即一尊木制的雅典娜神像从天而降，落在了特洛伊城的城墙里。人们将它称作雅典娜神像，这尊神像担任着保卫这座城市的重任。在祭神的宗教仪式中，人们抬着这尊神像在欢快的气氛和赞美的歌声中走遍城市的各个街道。

After the flames of war had spread for ten years before the walls of Troy, a prophet foretold that Troy could never be expected to fall as long as the Palladium was treasured by its people. In order to steal it out, Odysseus and Diomedes slipped into the capital one night in disguise, known to none but Helen. The bad woman took out them to Hecuba, the queen of Troy, at whose feet Odysseus immediately bowed down and asked for mercy. The queen granted their request, and with the help of Helen, they successfully brought the image back to the Greek camp at dawn. Later it was said that Aeneas got hold of it and carried it with him to his new land, where it was preserved together with the goddess' fire.
在特洛伊城建成之前，战火已弥漫了十年。一位预言家曾说：只要雅典娜神像深受人民的爱戴，特洛伊城就永远不会被摧毁。为了将神像偷出城外，一天夜里奥德修斯和狄俄墨德斯乔装改扮潜入首都，这一切只有海伦知道。这个可恶的女人把他们介绍给特洛伊皇后赫克犹巴。奥德修斯立刻跪倒在赫克犹巴的面前乞求怜悯。皇后答应了他们的要求，在海伦的帮助下，他们在拂晓时分成功地将这尊神像带回了希腊营地。据说后来埃弥斯得到了神像，并将它带到了自己的新领地。神像和神火一起被保存在这片土地上。

In English, since around 1600, the word palladium has been used figuratively to mean anything believed to provide protection or safety, and in particular in Christian contexts a sacred relic or icon believed to have a protective role in military contexts for a whole city, people or nation.
自大约公元1600年起，英语里的“palladium”一词一直被用来比喻提供保护和捍卫安全的事物，在基督教中更是把该词看作是在军事行动中能够保卫城市、人民乃至国家的圣物或圣像。