这朵“南京花”开了1.74亿年 World's oldest flower found in Nanjing

The fossilized flower called Nanjinganthus found in China's Nanjing Province. The fossil(化石) is the earliest known flowering plant. [Photo: VCG]

An article published by scientists(科学家 kēxuéjiā) from China, Spain, and Australia in the British magazine eLife says that a newly discovered fossilized flower(化石花 huàshí huā) in China's Nanjing Province might reshape our current understanding(理解 lǐjiě) of the evolution(进化 jìnhuà) of flowers, by pushing back the appearance(出现 chūxiàn) of flowering plants(植物 zhíwù) back as far as the Early Jurassic Period, according to a report by Xinhua Daily News on Wednesday.

The fossilized flower called Nanjinganthus found in China's Nanjing Province. The fossil(化石) is the earliest known flowering plant. [Photo: VCG]

The plant, called Nanjinganthus, dates back to more than 174 million years ago, making it the oldest(最古老的 zuì gǔlǎo de) known(已知的 yǐ zhī de) flower by almost 50 million years. The fossil was found by researchers after a long period of field exploration(勘探 kāntàn). Since the first fossilized flower was discovered in Nanjing in early 2016, more than 300 fossil flowers have been discovered.

The fossilized flower called Nanjinganthus found in China's Nanjing Province. The fossil(化石huàshí) is the earliest known flowering plant. [Photo: VCG]

The abundance(丰富的 fēngfù de) of specimens(标本 biāoběn) has allowed researchers to dissect some of the fossil flowers. The appearance of a cup-like receptacle, ovarian roof, and enclosed ovules in the Nanjinganthus is consistent with the researcher's inference that the Nanjinganthus was a flowering plant.

重点词汇 Key Word:

花

• <名词 n.> flower; blossom; bloom
  E.g. Duō měi de huā ya!
  多美的花呀!
  What beautiful flowers.

• <名词 n.> anything resembling a flower
  E.g. Xuěhuā zài kōngzhōng fēiwǔ.
  雪花在空中飞舞。
  Snowflakes are dancing in the air.

• <形容词 adj.> blurred; dim
  E.g. Qiángguāng shǐ wǒmen yǎnhuā.
  强光使我们眼花。
  The bright light dazzled us.

• <形容词 adj.> fancy; tricky; false
  E.g. Bié shuǎ huāzhāo!
  别耍花招!
  None of your little tricks.

• <动词 v.> spend; expend
  E.g. Shǎo huāqián,duō bànshì.
  少花钱,多办事。
  Get more done on less money.