The European explorer famed for leading the first Europeans to the Pacific Ocean from
the Americas was:
A. Vasco de Gama
B. Christopher Columbus
C. Francisco Pizarro
D. Vasco Nuez de Balboa
Olmec iconography:
A. was confined to the Gulf Lowlands where it was invented
B. emanated from the Valley of Oaxaca
C. occurred across all of Mesoamerica
D. has been found in various parts of Mesoamerica
The concept of civilization:
A. is used to connote any ancient society
B. refers primarily to elite expressions of a culture
C. is equated with the various basic societal types discussed in the textbook
D. is not used to understand the archaeological record
Casas Grandes, an Early Postclassic site in northern Mexico, was the most important
site of the ______ culture.
A. Puebloan
B. Hohokam
C. Mogollon
D. Teuchitln
Today, there are an estimated _____ Maya living in Mexico and Guatemala ” the direct
descendants of ancient Mesoamericans.
A. 100,000
B. 2 million
C. 7.5 million
D. 60 million
MATCHING 1
1) Ajuereado Phase
2) El Riego Phase
3) Coxcatln Phase
4) Abejas Phase
5) Purrn Phase
A. Subsistence here is based entirely on wild plants and animals
B. Diet is 35 percent domesticated plants
C. A few permanent settlements emerge
D. Initial occupation of Tehuacn Valley
E. Incipient plant domestication
The Aztecs stabilized the drained fields of the Basin of Mexico’s southern lake system
by:
A. driving pilings along the edges of the fields
B. routinely piling up more muck from the lake
C. draining the lakes to a low level to prevent the fields from eroding
D. Stabilization was not needed since the fields were floating.
After Mayapn was destroyed around 1441, ________ was established, becoming the
capital of the largest of the northern Yucatn’s Late Postclassic kingdoms.
A. Tula
B. Uxmal
C. Chichn Itz
D. Man
______ became a major Middle Formative trading center and specialized in the export
of sea shells for lapidary work.
A. Laguna Zope
B. La Blanca
C. La Zarca
D. El Mesak
You are permitted to choose one plant to take with you to live in the tierra fra lands of
Mesoamerica. You choose ______, which can provide you with food, drink, and
clothing.
A. maize
B. manioc
C. maguey
D. nopal cactus
During his encounter with the “Fat Cacique” at ________ Corts engineered the first of
his many diplomatic maneuvers that undermined the Aztec empire of Motecuzma II.
A. Zempoala
B. Tochtepec
C. Cotaxtla
D. Xicalanco
Puuc-style architecture:
A. began during the Formative period
B. originated at Edzn and Oxkintok
C. spread northward from the southern lowlands
D. evolved, with some influence from Teotihuacan
During the early 5th century:
A. a huge earthquake wiped out all habitation in southeastern Mesoamerica
B. the city of Cuicuilco collapsed and its people fled to Teotihuacan
C. the Ilopango eruption sent refugees to Copn
D. Classic Maya writing was invented
During the Middle/Late Formative (600″300 bc):
A. Olmec influence was at its greatest extent in Mesoamerica
B. the Maya cultural horizon replaced the Olmec cultural horizon
C. hunting and gathering predominated as the major subsistence strategy
D. Mesoamerica was characterized by widespread regional developments
The beginning point of the Long Count corresponds to _____ in the Gregorian calendar.
A. December 9, 36 bc
B. ad 1
C. December 22, 2012 bc
D. August 13, 3114 bc
The decline of Teotihuacan:
A. was caused by environmental degradation
B. may have been caused by an uprising
C. happened slowly, as disease gradually spread throughout the city
D. was caused, for the most part, by the Aztecs
The “International Style” refers to:
A. the types of houses at Tula
B. the widespread Mixteca-Puebla style
C. the way in which the Toltecs prepared their chocolate
D. calendars found throughout Mesoamerica
During the Early Classic, the regions of Puebla and Tlaxcala were dominated by:
A. Teotihuacan
B. Cholula
C. Monte Albn
D. the Mixteca Alta
Many people in Late Postclassic Maya society traveled to the island of Cozumel
primarily to:
A. shop in its vast markets
B. work in the cacao-processing centers
C. serve their turn at the military outpost
D. pray for children and an easy childbirth
Historical records show that Tizoc died when he:
A. suffered an injury in battle against the Tarascans
B. slipped and fell on a spilled cacao drink
C. caught a contagious disease during an epidemic
D. consumed poisoned food
Evidence for ancestor worship at Monte Albn:
A. is found in the style of palace architecture
B. suggests that it was customary among commoners, but not among the elite
C. is found in temples but not residences
D. is absent, even though this practice was common in other Mesoamerican cultures
According to central place models, the Escuintla region of the southern Pacific Coast
has a Late Formative occupation that:
A. is random
B. falls under the Transport and Mercantile Models
C. falls under the Mercantile and Administrative Models
D. falls under the Administrative and Transport Models
Tula’s “Canal Locality” refers to:
A. the boats on the Tula River
B. a set of three house groups that have been excavated
C. the place where fishermen spent time together
D. the area with the most irrigation canals
The ancient Zapotec site of Monte Albn is located:
A. at the base of the highest mountain in the Valley of Oaxaca
B. at the center of the three-armed Valley of Oaxaca
C. on top of San Jos Mogote
D. next to the river so that water sources could be easily used
If you were an officer captured in a Mexica Flower War you would be:
A. sacrificed to the god of war, Huitzilopochtli
B. forcibly converted to the side of the enemy
C. locked up in prison
D. exchanged for an officer prisoner of the opposition
A slave in Aztec society:
A. had a life of drudgery or potential sacrifice
B. could purchase their freedom, as long as adequate funds were available
C. belonged to the largest class in the Aztec social structure
D. belonged to the smallest class in the Aztec social structure
The new types of tools characteristic of the Archaic were:
A. ground stone tools
B. chipped or flaked stone tools
C. used for hunting large game
D. found in all parts of Mesoamerica at the same time
MATCHING 1
1) Cacaxtla
2) El Tajn
3) Alta Vista
4) La Quemada
5) Xochicalco
A. Northwestern Frontier site with an early skull rack
B. Olmeca-Xicalanca site renowned for its murals
C. Ceremonial center in the Northwestern Frontier sporting a Column of Halls
D. Morelos site built atop five adjacent hilltops, which traded in obsidian
E. Gulf lowland site with unique architecture that controlled regional trade
It is 6000 bc and you are in the Tehuacn Valley. Even though it is raining, you are still
expecting company for dinner tonight. The menu is:
A. your very own domesticated brand of corn, beans, and squash
B. roast duck stuffed with wild grain, and avocados and chili peppers on the side for
garnish
C. a medley of wild cactus fruits, rice, and deer steak
D. a three-course meal featuring heart of maguey, rabbit stew, and chocolate covered
bananas for dessert
A key activity for the Teotihuacan economy was:
A. obsidian working, as shown by the remains of possible obsidian workshops
B. the sculpting of large stone heads
C. the production of carved ceremonial objects made of jade, as shown by the jade
debris and hundreds of broken jades
D. the production and distribution of necklaces
Classic Maya hieroglyphic texts:
A. were primarily a source of economic information, documenting tax collection and
tribute payment
B. were aesthetic in nature, being mostly poems, plays and short stories
C. focused on religion and politics
D. consisted of social editorials and opinion pieces
Maya “star wars” are so called because military campaigns:
A. were timed to patterns of the planet Venus
B. were fought by individual “stars” or rulers
C. involved intergalactic intruders
D. went by this name in Mayan hieroglyphs