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Return to The Past in Perspective: An Introduction to Human Prehistory 8e Student Resources
Chapter 12 Student Quiz
An Explosion of Complexity: Mesoamerica
Quiz Content
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not completed
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The Maya had a written language of inscriptions on buildings, monuments, and________, as well as recorded in __________.
stone tablets, papyrus
correct
incorrect
clay tablets, bronze plates
correct
incorrect
stelae, codices
correct
incorrect
ceramics, bone engravings
correct
incorrect
*
not completed
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Monte Alban is located in the ________ and was built by the _________.
Valley of Mexico; Aztec
correct
incorrect
Valley of Oaxaca; Zapotec
correct
incorrect
Amazon floodplain; Olmec
correct
incorrect
Yucatán Peninsula; Maya
correct
incorrect
*
not completed
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The Maya collapse, according to Arthur Demarest, did
not
represent ______________; it was characterized by ____________.
political or religious decline; ecological catastrophe
correct
incorrect
cultural collapse; the abandonment of some cities and growth of others in the north
correct
incorrect
demographic reorganization; the growth of regional populations
correct
incorrect
true collapse; the diffusion of Mesoamerican civilization into the Valley of Mexico
correct
incorrect
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not completed
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The earliest evidence for writing in Mesoamerica is associated with the:
Olmec of the Middle Preclassic period
correct
incorrect
Olmec of the Classic period
correct
incorrect
Aztec of the Early Classic period
correct
incorrect
Maya of the Early Classic period
correct
incorrect
*
not completed
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The Mayan ruler K'inishJanaabPakal, also known today as Pakal the Great, was entombed in a carved stone sarcophagus at:
the Pyramid of the Moon at Teotihuacan
correct
incorrect
the Temple of Pakal at Tikal
correct
incorrect
the Temple of the Inscriptions at Palenque
correct
incorrect
the Temple of the Feathered Serpent at ChichénItzá
correct
incorrect
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One of the great Postclassic centers of Mayan civilization was located at:
Chichén Itzá
correct
incorrect
Palenque
correct
incorrect
Tikal
correct
incorrect
Teotihuacan
correct
incorrect
*
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The Zapotecs built a city in the Valley of Oaxaca, known as:
Teotihuacan
correct
incorrect
Tenochtitlán
correct
incorrect
Monte Albán
correct
incorrect
Copán
correct
incorrect
*
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While Mesoamerican civilizations in different regions overlapped in time, which of the following represents the correct chronological sequence, from earliest (oldest) to latest (more recent)?
Olmec, Aztec, Classic Maya, Teotihuacán
correct
incorrect
Teotihuacán, Classic Maya, Olmec, Aztec
correct
incorrect
Olmec, Teotihuacán, Classic Maya, Aztec
correct
incorrect
Teotihuacán, Olmec, Classic Maya, Aztec
correct
incorrect
*
not completed
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Which Mesoamerican city was built on a grid pattern around 200 C.E.?
Teotihuacán
correct
incorrect
El Mirador
correct
incorrect
ChichénItzá
correct
incorrect
Tenochtitlán
correct
incorrect
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not completed
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Hundreds of platform monuments and pyramids were built at Teotihuacán; the largest of these is the ___________________.
Pyramid of the Moon
correct
incorrect
Temple of the Feathered Serpent
correct
incorrect
Pyramid of the Sun
correct
incorrect
Platform of Inscriptions
correct
incorrect
*
not completed
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Aztec and Mesoamerican populations were drastically affected by ______________, Aztec word for a devastating epidemic.
cocoliztli
correct
incorrect
chinampas
correct
incorrect
tzompantli
correct
incorrect
atlatl
correct
incorrect
*
not completed
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The Aztec word for a large rack with hundreds of human skulls is ________.
cocoliztli
correct
incorrect
chinampas
correct
incorrect
tzompantli
correct
incorrect
atlatl
correct
incorrect
*
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The Aztec believed human sacrifice was necessary to:
appease underworld demons known as
tzompantli
correct
incorrect
guarantee the survival of humanity
correct
incorrect
provide food for their warriors, priests, and elite
correct
incorrect
strike fear into the hearts of Spaniards and other foreigners
correct
incorrect
*
not completed
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The legitimacy of Mayan king YaxPahsaj was symbolized on Altar Q at:
ChichénItzá
correct
incorrect
Palenque
correct
incorrect
Tikal
correct
incorrect
Copán
correct
incorrect
*
not completed
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The records left by the Maya are mostly concerned with:
trade and economics
correct
incorrect
philosophy and religion
correct
incorrect
political and military history
correct
incorrect
astronomy and mathematics
correct
incorrect
*
not completed
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Teotihuacán rose to prominence in the Basin of Mexico following a struggle with its rival, ____________, and the destruction of that city by ____________.
Cuicuilco; a volcanic eruption
correct
incorrect
Tenochtitlán; civil war
correct
incorrect
Monte Albán; a severe drought and devastating fire
correct
incorrect
Copán; a hurricane
correct
incorrect
*
not completed
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By 1,900 years ago, the central elements of Mayan culture were in place. These did
not
include:
a stratified society ruled by kings
correct
incorrect
ritual ball games and a reverence for precious jade
correct
incorrect
a sophisticated bronze producing industry
correct
incorrect
a hieroglyphic written language and calendar
correct
incorrect
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not completed
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Montezuma ruled over millions of people from the _______ capital of _____.
Mayan; Tikal
correct
incorrect
Aztec; Tenochtitlán
correct
incorrect
Teotihuacános; Teotihuacán
correct
incorrect
Zapotec; Monte Albán
correct
incorrect
*
not completed
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The large population of the Valley of Mexico was made possible and supported by:
long-distance trade, salt mining, and stone masonry
correct
incorrect
hunting and gathering, fishing, and cultivation of root crops
correct
incorrect
advanced medical, artisanal, and metallurgical technologies
correct
incorrect
agricultural irrigation, terraces, and raised fields called chinampas
correct
incorrect
*
not completed
.
Some of the earliest monumental civic structures of the Maya have been found in central Guatemala, at the site of:
Tikal
correct
incorrect
Ceibal
correct
incorrect
ChichénItzá
correct
incorrect
Teotihuacán
correct
incorrect
*
not completed
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Mayan art and iconography feature prominent depictions of:
infants and children
correct
incorrect
stars and comets
correct
incorrect
farming, hunting, and gatehring
correct
incorrect
mutilation and violence
correct
incorrect
*
not completed
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Following the Classic period, Mayan civilization
collapsed, then began to slowly develop into Aztec civilization
correct
incorrect
entered the second Classic period, until being conquered by Teotihuacán
correct
incorrect
fell into decline, resurged at its center in the north, then fell into decline again
correct
incorrect
suddenly collapsed, as the population dispersed and never again built monumental cities
correct
incorrect
*
not completed
.
The Classic period of the Maya dates from around ___________.
5,500 to 4,000 years ago
correct
incorrect
3,500 to 2,500 years ago
correct
incorrect
250 to 800 C.E.
correct
incorrect
600 to 1500 C.E.
correct
incorrect
*
not completed
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The _____________ called Teotihuacán the Place of __________.
Aztec; the gods
correct
incorrect
Olmec; the foreigners
correct
incorrect
Maya; mountains
correct
incorrect
Zapotecs, the pyramids
correct
incorrect
*
not completed
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Many archaeologists, such as David Webster, believe the decline of the Maya was primarily caused by:
a cataclysm of some kind, such as an earthquake, volcano, or tsunami
correct
incorrect
ecological degradation from slash-and-burn farming techniques
correct
incorrect
endless wars between neighboring Mayan city-states
correct
incorrect
conquest of Mayan city states by Teotihuacán
correct
incorrect
*
not completed
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At its peak, the population of the city of Teotihuacán may have reached:
50,000 people
correct
incorrect
200,000 people
correct
incorrect
500,000 people
correct
incorrect
1,000,000 people
correct
incorrect
*
not completed
.
Many of the temples in the city of Palenque appear to have been built:
as residences for powerful Mayan priests.
correct
incorrect
to serve as communal storehouses.
correct
incorrect
as a means of impressing foreigners and enemies, including Spaniards.
correct
incorrect
to legitimize the kingship of Pakal, since his father was not royal.
correct
incorrect
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not completed
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In A.D. 1519, the Aztec population is estimated to have been _____________; by the early 1600s it was approximately ___________.
500,000; 10 million
correct
incorrect
1 million; 10,000
correct
incorrect
25 million; 1 million
correct
incorrect
950,000; 50,000
correct
incorrect
*
not completed
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Early evidence of complexity in Mayan societies is indicated by the construction of ____________ by around __________ years ago.
enormous stone heads; 3,500
correct
incorrect
stone platforms; 2,800
correct
incorrect
obsidian statuary; 2,400
correct
incorrect
stelae; 1,800
correct
incorrect
*
not completed
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The Maya appear to have derived their writing and mathematics from the:
Zapotecs
correct
incorrect
Toltec
correct
incorrect
Aztec
correct
incorrect
Olmec
correct
incorrect
*
not completed
.
The Aztec Empire was based on the systematic expansion of:
religious beliefs that required increased human sacrifice
correct
incorrect
oppressive military control of neighboring societies by conquest
correct
incorrect
a distinctive architectural style and artistic expression
correct
incorrect
tribute in the form of gold, jade, feathers, cloth, and jewels
correct
incorrect
*
not completed
.
What does the lid of the sarcophagus of Pakal the Great, ruler of Palenque, depict?
the slain enemies of the king, with a series of hieroglyphs representing all of the great cities and civilizations of the world
correct
incorrect
the dead king suspended between the Maya earth monster and the Quetzal bird, which symbolizes the Maya heaven
correct
incorrect
the Aztec king ascending to heaven on a chariot made of gold
correct
incorrect
an ancient alien looking through a telescope and piloting a spaceship
correct
incorrect
*
not completed
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Based on the strontium isotope ratios in the teeth of people buried at Copán, the rulers were:
a local elite who rose to power based on popularity and charisma
correct
incorrect
foreigners from different regions across much of the Maya territory
correct
incorrect
an elite class of astronomer-priests who ate mostly vegetables and fish
correct
incorrect
emigrants from north Africa and taught the Maya how to build pyramids
correct
incorrect
*
not completed
.
Variations in oxygen isotopes in a stalagmite in YokBalum Cave in Belize indicate:
increased rainfall and severe flooding, associated with the collapse of Maya ceremonial centers
correct
incorrect
amount of rainfall, associated with a severe drought
correct
incorrect
increased air pollution from slash-and-burn agriculture
correct
incorrect
progressively colder temperatures, leading to an abandonment of the entire region
correct
incorrect
*
not completed
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The timing of monumental construction at Ceibal is significant because:
It confirms the residents of Ceibal were influenced by the Olmec
correct
incorrect
It suggests the Maya may have been influenced by the Egyptians
correct
incorrect
It contradicts the hypothesis that the Olmec inspired the monumental construction of the Maya
correct
incorrect
It contradicts the hypothesis that monumental construction among the Maya began during the Classic period
correct
incorrect
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