© 2006 pearson education, inc. chapter 3. © 2006 pearson education, inc. 1.why was egypt...

© 2006 Pearson Education, Inc.

Chapter 3


1. Why was Egypt characterized as the “gift of the Nile”?

A. Because the land would be a total desert without the river

B. Because unpredictable floods make existence itself seem like a gift

C. Because of its cataracts

D. Because invasions frequently occurred


CORRECT ANSWER = A

B. Nile flooding is as predictable as clockwork

C. The cataracts serve to impede transport from the south

D. Egypt is effectively insulated from invasion


2. What has tended to impede our knowledge of Ancient Egypt?

A. Difficulties in deciphering Egyptian writing

B. The monumental structures along the Nile

C. The river’s washing away of many structures

D. Destruction of towns by invading armies


CORRECT ANSWER = C

A. Egyptian writing has been fully deciphered

B. The structures enhance, rather than impede our knowledge

D. Egypt was seldom, if ever, invaded during its early history


3. How did Egyptian writing develop?

A. Out of Mesopotamian cuneiform

B. From tiny pictographs, later transcribed into shorthand

C. Originally from medical texts

D. Being written only on stone tablets


CORRECT ANSWER = B

A. It developed independently of Mesopotamian writing

C. The original hieroglyphs dealt with business and administration

D. Hieroglyphs were inscribed on a variety of mediums


4. What do the records reveal about the unification of Egypt?

A. This was accomplished by a king named Menes

B. This was accomplished by a king named Narmer

C. This was accomplished by an unknown “pre-dynastic” king

D. This unity was probably forged around the year 3100 B.C.E.


CORRECT ANSWER = D

A., B. & C. Different accounts cite different kings so it is uncertain who exactly unified Egypt.


5. How did Egyptians view the function of their gods?

A. As being evil and frightening

B. As personifying the country’s political unification

C. As remote and unhelpful

D. As warlike and chaotic


CORRECT ANSWER = B

A. This only seems to hold true for Seth

C. Most of the gods/goddesses are depicted as caring and helpful

D. Again, Seth is the only deity that matched this description


6. What did the Egyptian afterlife concept appear to generate?

A. A deep sense of optimism among the Egyptians

B. Independence under the rule of city-states

C. A belief system similar to that of Mesopotamia

D. A sense of fear and guilt


CORRECT ANSWER = A

B. This occurred only very briefly, the cities were soon absorbed into kingdoms

C. Egyptian religious belief was much different from Mesopotamia’s

D. Egyptian faith seems to have dwelled more on hope and salvation


7. What is said to account for the sizable population growth at Hierakonpolis during the period from 3800-3500 B.C.E.?

A. Refugees fleeing from the countryside during a civil war

B. Menes/Narmer making the city his capital

C. The local leadership undertaking improved irrigation projects

D. None of the above


CORRECT ANSWER = C

A. No evidence is cited for this

B. This event occurred after 3800-3500 B.C.E.


8. What does the decline of pyramid tomb building after Menkaure’s time most likely indicate?

A. That wars ravaged the countryside shortly thereafter

B. Famine and diseases greatly reduced the population

C. The Egyptians, as a whole, became far less religious

D. A lessening in Egyptian power generally


CORRECT ANSWER = D

A., B., & C. are not substantiated by evidence


9. How does the fall of the Middle Kingdom compare/contrast with that of the Old Kingdom?

A. Both fell as a result of invasions from Nubia

B. Both seem to have deteriorated through weakening of central authority

C. The Old Kingdom weakened internally, but the Middle Kingdom fell through invasion by the Hyksos

D. The Old Kingdom was overrun by the Nubians, the Middle by the Hyksos


CORRECT ANSWER = C

A. This was true of neither

B. This is true of the Old, but not of the Middle

D. This is true of the Middle, but not the Old


10. What best describes the fate of Akhenaten’s reforms?

A. They were accepted by many Egyptians and caused controversy for centuries thereafter

B. They led to a civil war during which the royal family were killed

C. After his death his reforms disappeared and the old religion prevailed

D. They were accepted by the priesthood but not the common people


CORRECT ANSWER = C

A. When Akhenaten died, his reforms seem to have died with him

B. This threatened to happen, but did not

D. The priesthood was extremely hostile to these reforms


11. How did the Indus Culture differ from that of Egypt?

A. One was based in a river valley, the other was not

B. One was predominately urban, the other not

C. One was very religiously oriented, the other not

D. Unlike Egypt, the outside world forgot about the Indus Culture


CORRECT ANSWER = D

A. Egypt was based on the Nile River, the Indus Valley on the Indus River

B. They both developed substantial urban centers

C. There is insufficient evidence to indicate this


12. What did the excavations at Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro reveal?

A. That Indian civilization had not started in the Ganges Valley after all

B. The Aryans had not built India’s first cities

C. Indian civilization was older than anyone had suspected

D. All of these


CORRECT ANSWER = D


13. For what major cause is our knowledge of Indus Civilization quite limited?

A. The writing cannot yet be deciphered

B. It was abandoned and forgotten for around 2,000 years

C. The Aryans completely destroyed the buildings and records

D. Indus River floods were so destructive that most records were destroyed


CORRECT ANSWER = A

B. This would make no difference if the records could be understood

C. There is no evidence of massive destruction by the Aryans

D. This did not occur


14. What do the excavations in the Indus Valley tell us clearly about the civilization there?

A. Its burials are as elaborate as those in Egypt and Mesopotamia

B. Social stratification is evident in the town & buildings layout

C. The plan suggests a government of great bureaucratic capacity

D. The art and the culture were rather simplistic


CORRECT ANSWER = C

A. The burials are not as extravagant as those of the other two cultures

B. This is not evident in what has been excavated

C. The artwork shows great sophistication


15. What significant legacies did the Harappan Culture pass on to the Aryans?

A. Farming and animal husbandry

B. Language and literature

C. Religious symbolism

D. A & C


CORRECT ANSWER = D

C. The Aryans apparently independently developed their own language and literature.

© 2006 pearson education, inc. chapter 3. © 2006 pearson education, inc. 1.why was egypt...

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