Ancient History - yr 11 revision

What is Troy?

Troy is an ancient city and archaeological site in modern-day Turkey; the setting for the Trojan War in Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey; the war was a 10-year siege of the city by Greek forces led by King Agamemnon of Mycenae.

Who is Homer?

A Greek poet credited as the author of the Iliad and the Odyssey; could have been one person or an amalgamation of figures; the oldest written fragment dates to the 3rd century BC.

Why might Homer be considered unreliable?

He wrote the Iliad and Odyssey long after the Trojan War and lacked first-hand facts; potential bias due to his Greek heritage.

What is the Iliad?

An epic focusing on a short period of the Trojan War (~50 days); war begins when the Prince of Troy abducts Helen of Sparta; Helen’s husband Menelaus rallies Greek leaders to retrieve her; illustrates the heroic culture of ancient Greece.

The strategic location of Troy?

Troy (modern-day Hisarlik) was near the Hellespont

Why was the location of Troy strategically valuable in the Greek world?

Troy controlled key trade routes at the Dardanelles

When was the Bronze Age?

Approximately 3300 BC to 1100 BC.

When did the Trojan War likely occur?

Between 1230 and 1180 BC

What was significant about Bronze Age developments?

Innovations like brick housing and literature still influence modern society.

Explain the impact of societal development in the Bronze Age in terms of trade.

Bronze Age trade spread goods and people

Why is it important that Troy had specific contracts with Aegean civilisations and the Hittite Empire?

They show Troy’s key role in Late Bronze Age trade and politics

Who began building Persepolis?

Achaemenid King Darius I in the early 6th century BC.

Who completed most of Persepolis?

Xerxes

When and how was Persepolis destroyed?

In 330 BC by fire after Alexander the Great’s conquest.

How large was Persepolis?

12 hectares (120

What does Achaemenid mean?

Relating to the dynasty that ruled the Persian Empire from Cyrus I to Darius III (553–330 BC).

What is a battlement?

A wall around the top of a fort or castle with regular gaps for firing weapons.

What is cuneiform?

A system of wedge-shaped writing on clay tablets; first known writing system.

What was the Greco-Persian War?

A series of wars between Greek states and the Persian Empire (499–449 BC).

What is iconography?

Representation of abstract ideas through drawings

What does razed mean?

Destroyed

What are reliefs?

Wall sculptures attached to a background

What was the satrapy system?

The Persian Empire’s provincial government system

Where is Persepolis located?

70 km northeast of Shiraz

What does Persepolis mean?

“Persian city.”

Describe Persepolis’ setting.

Built on a 125

Which kings expanded the Persian Empire under the Achaemenids?

Cyrus the Great

Describe Persepolis’ main features.

The Apadana (audience hall)

What type of religion did the ancient Greeks follow?

Polytheism

What did the gods control according to the ancient Greeks?

Nature in all its forms and enormous power over the world

What is the Greek origin story called?

Hesiod's Theogony

How was the underworld characterised?

By the absence of life pleasures

What was often part of the approach to the underworld?

A journey over water

How does Homer’s Odyssey describe Hades?

As a "murky darkness"

What did most ancient Greeks believe happened to the soul after death?

It left the body and continued to exist in some form

What was the general experience of the underworld for most people?

Bleak and sombre

Why did Greeks place a coin in the mouth of the deceased?

To allow them to pass into the afterlife

What kind of coins were commonly offered for passage into the afterlife?

Obols or drachmas

Who did the coin pay in order to cross into the underworld?

Charon (the ferryman)

When were communal tombs common in Greece?

The Archaic period

What happened to communal tombs by the Classical period?

They declined significantly

Why did Ancient Egyptians prepare for death?

They believed in an afterlife where the spirit continued to exist and needed sustenance - achieved through proper lifetime preparations.

What was the Book of the Dead?

A funerary text to help Egyptians achieve immortality.

Who possibly wrote the Book of the Dead?

A royal scribe called Ani.

Who was the Book of the Dead originally for?

Pharaohs only.

What determined the complexity of a tomb?

The wealth and social status of the deceased.

What items were placed with the body during burial?

Food + drink + and personal belongings.

Who were hired to express grief at funerals?

Professional mourners (wailing women).

Why were only women hired as mourners?

It was unacceptable for men to cry in public.

What did the scarab beetle symbolize?

Resurrection and guidance in the afterlife.

What did the Eye of Horus symbolize?

Healing + protection + restoration and good health.

What did the Ankh symbolize?

Life and eternal existence in both the mortal world and afterlife.

What were the two essential components of houses of eternity?

A burial chamber and a mortuary chapel.

What was the purpose of the burial chamber?

To house and protect the body and spirit.

What was the purpose of the mortuary chapel?

For visitors to perform rites and offerings.

What was special about the door design of tombs?

It allowed the spirit to move freely.

What was a serdab?

A hidden room housing a statue of the deceased.

When did rock-cut tombs appear?

At the end of the 4th dynasty - common in the 5th dynasty.

Who were rock-cut tombs built for?

Nobles + officials + and private individuals.

What features did rock-cut tombs have?

Carved into cliffs + small and durable + with offering chambers + decorated walls + and smoothed plaster surfaces.

When did Ancient Egypt begin

approximately 3100 BCE

How long did Ancient Egypt last

3000 years

Who carried out administration in the Old Kingdom

the vizier and bureaucracy of officials

Who was the first god in the Heliopolitan creation myth

Atum-Re

Who were Atum-Re’s children

Shu (air) and Tefnut (moisture)

Who were the children of Shu and Tefnut

Geb (earth) and Nut (sky)

What did Shu do in the creation myth

separated the earth from the sky

Who were the children of Geb and Nut

Isis