CHAPTER 9 Ancient America
Form A
Chapter 9 Test Part 1: Multiple Choice
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____ 1. What geographic feature is common in Mesoamerica’s tropical lowlands? a. jungles b. mountains c. rivers d. volcanoes
____ 6. Which people developed the first civilization in Mesoamerica? a. the Chavín b. the Maya c. the Moche d. the Olmec
____ 2. Which of the following do archaeologists think united the people of the Chavín civilization? a. art b. farming c. religion d. trade
____ 7. Which of these was lowest in Mayan class society? a. farmers b. merchants c. priests d. warriors
____ 3. With which ancient civilization are glyphs and steles associated? a. the Chavín b. the Maya c. the Moche d. the Olmec
____ 8. Which culture developed the mathematic ideas of the zero and positions to show place? a. the Maya b. the Moche c. the Nazca d. the Olmec
____ 4. Which ancient civilization was NOT located in South America? a. the Chavín b. the Maya c. the Moche d. the Nazca
____ 9. In what economic activity were most Mayan people involved? a. making pottery b. making textiles c. farming d. trade
____ 5. Which type of art was created only by the Olmec? a. huge, carved stone heads b. highly decorated pottery c. gold, silver, and turquoise jewelry d. carved steles
____ 10. For what purposes were Mayan pyramids used? a. for tombs and calendars b. for religious rituals and centers of trade c. for religious rituals and ruler announcements d. for tombs and religious rituals
Chapter 9, Form A Formal Assessment
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CHAPTER 9
Choose the letter of the best answer. (4 points each)
CHAPTER 9 TEST CONTINUED
Part 2: Map Skills Using the exhibit, choose the letter of the best answer. (4 points each) Mayan Civilization A.D. 250–900 Mayan civilization Major city-state
Gulf of Mexico
Chichén Itzá Uxmal
N
Yucatán Peninsula
E
W S
0 0
100 100
200 miles 200 kilometers
Palenque lenque Piedras Negras
Co Copán
____ 11. Which city-state is closest to the edge of the Mayan civilization? a. Copán c. Tikal b. Palenque d. Uxmal
____ 14. Which is the southern-most Mayan city-state? a. Copán c. Piedras Negras b. Palenque d. Tikal
____ 12. What city-state is northwest of Piedras Negras? a. Chichén Itzá c. Tikal b. Palenque d. Uxmal
____ 15. The people of which city-state would have had the shortest journey to the Gulf of Mexico? a. Copán c. Uxmal b. Palenque d. Piedras Negras
____ 13. Which two city-states were the farthest apart? a. Palenque and Copán b. Chichén Itzá and Piedras Negras c. Palenque and Chichén Itzá d. Chichén Itzá and Copán
Chapter 9, Form A Formal Assessment
CHAPTER 9
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PACIFIC OCEAN
Tikal
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CHAPTER 9 TEST CONTINUED
Part 3: Document–Based Questions INTRODUCTION Historical Context The Olmec and the Maya were two of the most advanced
civilizations in the early Americas. The following documents provide information about these important civilizations. Document 1 is a modern-day historian’s description of La Venta, an Olmec city that arose around 900 B.C. Document 2 is a historian’s description of Tikal, a great Mayan city. Document 3 shows a huge stone head sculpture from La Venta and a clay pot found at Tikal. Task Compare
and contrast Olmec and Mayan cities.
A. SHORT ANSWER
Study each document carefully and answer the questions that follow. (4 points each)
CHAPTER 9
La Venta, . . . one of the greatest of all Olmec sites . . . is located on an island in a sea-level coastal swamp near the Tonalá River, about 18 miles from the Gulf [of Mexico]. This island has slightly more than 2 square miles of dry land. . . . The major feature at La Venta is a huge, volcanoshaped pyramid of clay, 110 ft . . . high. The idea behind such enormous mounds is of interest. . . . It is almost as though people were struggling to get closer to the gods, to raise their temples to the sky. . . . [La Venta] must have been supported by a hinterland [nearby] population of at least 18,000 persons; the main pyramid alone probably took some 800,000 man-days to construct. . . . In its heyday, the site must have been vastly impressive, for different colored clays were used for floors, and the sides of platforms were painted in solid colors of red, yellow, and purple. Scattered in the plazas fronting these . . . structures were a large number of monuments sculptured from basalt [a type of rock]. Outstanding among these are the Colossal heads, of which four were found at La Venta. 16.
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What is the major feature at La Venta?
Chapter 9, Form A Formal Assessment
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Document 1: from Mexico: From the Olmecs to the Aztecs by Michael D. Coe
Document 2: from Stolen Continents: The Americas Through Indian Eyes Since 1492 by Richard Wright
During Mesoamerica’s Classic period (A.D. 200–900), the center of Maya civilization was the Petán Jungle, the green heart of the Maya world. More than a dozen great cities flourished there, each the capital of a small kingdom; in the very middle of the forest stood the greatest of them all, Tikal. This city, whose overgrown ruins cover twenty three square miles, . . . held perhaps 100,000 people at its height. The urban core contains 3,000 buildings, gripped by tall trees alive with birds and monkeys. Five pyramids with ornate [decorative] stone temples on their summits [tops] still rise 200 feet into the air, and when you climb these ancient skyscrapers they lift you above the forest canopy and you stand as upon an island in the greenery and mist. One of these [pyramids] . . . was the tallest structure in the Americas until the Washington Capitol dome was built—eleven centuries later. 17.
How much area did Tikal cover and how many people lived there at its height?
CHAPTER 9
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Document 3: Tikal pottery and Olmec colossal head
18.
What suggests that the face painted on the pot may have been influenced by the colossal head?
B. ESSAY 19.
Use information from the documents, your answers to the questions following the documents, and your knowledge of history to write an essay on the following topic: Compare and contrast La Venta and Tikal. (8 points)
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CHAPTER 9 TEST CONTINUED
Part 4: Essay Answer the following question(s) on the back of this paper or on a separate sheet of paper. (10 points each) 20.
Explain why the Olmec are often called Mesoamerica’s “mother culture.” THINK ABOUT:
• when and where the Olmec civilization arose • civilizations the Olmec influenced • how the Olmec influenced other civilizations 21.
Compare and contrast Nazca and Moche agriculture. THINK ABOUT:
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CHAPTER 9
• where each group lived • the environment in which they farmed • how they adapted to their environment
Chapter 9, Form A Formal Assessment
