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Multiple-Choice Questions
1. The arts developed in Sumerian city-states largely as
a. celebrations of the priest-kings’ powers.
b. embodiments of the concept of pairidaeza, or paradise.
c. decorations for the ziggurats’ interiors.
d. votive offerings to Gilgamesh.
Answer: a page 33 LO: 2.1
2. The Mesopotamian ziggurat, with its crowning temple, might have symbolized
a. an entrance to the earth’s womb.
b. the triumph of good over evil.
c. a bridge between heaven and earth.
d. the sanctity of water.
Answer: c page 34 LO: 2.1
3. Visitors to the ziggurat often left statues representing themselves to
a. gain admittance to the temple on the top.
b. serve as prayer offerings to the gods.
c. wish the priest-king a good afterlife.
d. ward off the evils of their enemies.
Answer: b page 34 LO: 2.1
4. The Mesopotamian ruler’s role in religion was to
a. act as intermediary between the gods and humans.
b. preside at sacrifices that took place atop the ziggurats.
c. mate with a priestess in a yearly ceremony.
d. select a particular divinity to be chief in his city-state.
Answer: a page 35 LO: 2.1
5. Mesopotamians viewed human society as
a. the highest conceivable realm.
b. the realm of both good and evil gods.
c. part of a larger society governed by the gods.
d. a hell that was to be endured.
Answer: c page 35 LO: 2.1
6. The convention of hieratic scale can be seen in
a. the Royal Standard of Ur.
b. Head of an Akkadian Man.
c. Human-Headed Winged Bull.
d. the Achaemenid rhyton.
Answer: a page 38 LO: 2.1
7. What is Shamash, the Mesopotamian sun god, doing in his portrayal atop the Stele of
Hammurabi?
a. inscribing the 282 laws on the stele
b. giving his blessing to Hammurabi, Babylon’s ruler
c. executing a Babylonian who has violated a law
d. crowning Hammurabi as king of the Babylonians
Answer: b page 43 LO: 2.1
8. What is the term for endowing the gods and the forces of nature that they represent with
humanlike traits, a characteristic of Mesopotamian religion?
a. monotheism
b. hieratic scale
c. social perspective
d. anthropomorphism
Answer: d page 47 LO: 2.1
9. The story of Gilgamesh is considered an epic because it
a. has both a narrative and a narrator.
b. describes a people’s common heritage.
c. recounts an adventure in the underworld.
d. Includes both a protagonist and an antagonist.
Answer: b page 48 LO: 2.2
10. What classic struggle do Gilgamesh and Enkidu represent?
a. nature versus civilization
b. good versus evil
c. individual versus society
d. ruling class versus slave
Answer: a page 48 LO: 2.2
11. Which god helps Gilgamesh and Enkidu kill Humbaba the Terrible, guardian of the Cedar Forest?
a. Anu, the sky god
b. Enlil, the storm god
c. Ea, the water god
d. Shamash, the sun god
Answer: d page 48 LO: 2.2
12. In the Epic of Gilgamesh, Ishtar sends the Bull of Heaven to destroy Gilgamesh and Enkidu
because Gilgamesh
a. killed her friend, Humbaba.
b. declared war on her patron city.
c. refused her marriage proposal.
d. oppressed the people of Uruk.
Answer: c page 49 LO: 2.2
13. The gods granted Utnapishtim immortality because he
a. baked bread for them.
b. survived the Great Flood.
c. was considered a virtuous man.
d. begged them fiercely.
Answer: b page 51 LO: 2.2
14. The Epic of Gilgamesh is the first known literary work to
a. confront the idea of death.
b. show humans challenging gods.
c. celebrate human friendship.
d. anthropomorphize gods.
Answer: a page 51 LO: 2.2
15. The Hebrews differ from other Near Eastern cultures in their
a. high regard for literature.
b. belief in a flood story.
c. worship of a single god.
d. patriarchal leadership structure.
Answer: c page 52 LO: 2.3
16. According to tradition, Abraham led his people out of their Mesopotamian homeland to Canaan
in order to
a. escape the warlike Akkadians and increasingly powerful Babylonians.
b. to locate more fertile farmland and escape the desert.
c. to escape Hammurabi’s harsh laws.
d. to found a new religion.
Answer: a page 52 LO: 2.3
17. The Hebrews believed their status as “chosen people” meant that they were to
a. deliver the message of monotheism to all Mesopotamian peoples.
b. become Mesopotamia’s ruling class.
c. become exempt from temptation.
d. set an example of a higher moral standard.
Answer: d page 52 LO: 2.3
18. Why were the Hebrews supposed to neither speak nor write their god’s name?
a. Abraham forbade it for unknown reasons.
b. It was considered too sacred.
c. It was considered politically dangerous.
d. Isaac indicated that the name would only be revealed later.
Answer: b page 52 LO: 2.3
19. How do the Ten Commandments differ from Hammurabi’s Code?
a. Hammurabi’s Code has no class distinctions.
b. The Ten Commandments were not written down.
c. Hammurabi’s Code focuses more on religious matters.
d. The Ten Commandments provide an ethical code.
Answer: d page 53 LO: 2.3
20. The rule of the Hebrew kings was modeled on the
a. covenant between God and the Hebrews.
b. articles listed in the Sumerian King List.
c. code of Hammurabi.
d. commandments dictated by Cyrus II.
Answer: a page 54 LO: 2.3
21. Which structure in Neo-Babylonia do many believe was the legendary Tower of Babel described
in Genesis?
a. the Hanging Gardens
b. the Ishtar Gate
c. the ziggurat of Marduk
d. the library of Ashurbanipal
Answer: c page 56 LO: 2.4
22. Which city served as capital of the Persian Empire?
a. Babylon
b. Ionia
c. Uruk
d. Persepolis
Answer: d page 58 LO: 2.4
23. King Darius incorporated multiple architecture styles in his great palace to
a. reflect the diversity of his peoples.
b. utilize his many spoils of war.
c. attract Greek and Egyptian wives.
d. appease the many gods he served.
Answer: a page 58 LO: 2.4
24. The reliefs on the stairway leading to Darius’s Hall of One Hundred Columns represent
a. Darius conquering the Greeks and the Egyptians.
b. visitors from 23 nations bringing tribute to Darius.
c. huge winged bulls standing guard.
d. Darius passing the crown to his son, Xerxes.
Answer: b pages 58.59 LO: 2.4
25. Zoroaster’s greatest contribution to religious thought is the
a. concept of a heaven and a hell.
b. notion of a dualistic universe.
c. emphasis on free will.
d. belief in an enduring soul.
Answer: c page 60 LO: 2.4
Matching
26. The Ark of the Covenant a. Abu Temple
27. Persepolis b. Babylon
28. Tell Asmar statues c. Jerusalem
29. The Ishtar Gate d. Nineveh
30. The Royal Standard e. Persia
31. Gilgamesh f. Ur
32. Library of Ashurbanipal g. Uruk
Answers: 26-c (LO: 2.3), 27-e (LO: 2.4), 28-a (LO: 2.1), 29-b (LO: 2.4), 30-f (LO: 2.1), 31-g (LO: 2.2), 32-
d (LO: 2.1)
Essay Questions
33. Investigate the views of the relationships between the gods and the Mesopotamians that the
ziggurat at Ur, the dedicatory statues from the Abu Temple, and the Royal Tombs of Ur provide.
LO: 2.1
34. Explore the revelations about the Mesopotamian sense of order that the Standard of Ur and
King Ashurbanipal’s library at Nineveh convey. LO: 2.1
35. List and discuss the valued qualities that Gilgamesh reveals about the Mesopotamian culture.
LO: 2.2
36. Compare the Hebrew law set forth in the Torah to the Law Code of Hammurabi. LO: 2.3
37. Compare the three supreme deities (Marduk, YWHW, Ahura Mazda) in the Mesopotamian,
Hebrew, and Zoroastrian religions. LO: 2.3
38. Compare the concept of free will in the Mesopotamian, Hebrew, and Zoroastrian religions.
LO: 2.3
39. Examine the role that writing played in the Sumerian and Hebrew cultures. LO: 2.3
40. Discuss Neo-Babylonian and Persian art and architecture as propaganda, supporting your
response with at least two specific works covered in the text
