Deck 14: Bringing the Four Parts Together

Question 1

What is the importance of the Huaca del Sol and Huaca de la Luna?

Answer 1

Made of millions of mud bricks, the Huacas were made by the Moche. The Huaca del Sol was severely damaged during looting by the Spanish, who diverted a river to dissolve and wash away the adobe so they could get to the gold. At the Huaca de la Luna, sacrificial victims in various states of dismemberment were uncovered. These rituals had been long known from Moche artwork, specifically painted pots, but the burials speak to the actuality of those rituals taking place. The society was complex, with a powerful religious system, and was contemporary with the Nasca culture.

Question 2

Explain why research into raised field agriculture is important.

Answer 2

While working on the site of Tiwanaku, trying to understand how the people at the site produced food, evidence of raised field agriculture was found. In this system, ditches are excavated, the earth is piled in the area between ditches, and water is then diverted from rivers to fill the ditches. This system effected irrigation and drainage, insulated the vegetation from the cold, and produced fertilizer from rotting vegetation in the ditches. Using experiments, the archaeologists reintroduced the systems to the poor people currently living in the area. Yields were good and the areas used less fertilizer, creating promise for the future.

Question 3

Describe the Inca Empire.

Answer 3

The Inca Empire was known as Tawantinsuyu, ""The Four Parts Together,"" and it thrived for over a century, tying together a vast realm under the royal Inca in the capital city, Cuzco. At the peak of the empire, the Inca ruled over 12 million people in a geographically diverse region that stretched across 3,000 kilometers from north Chile to Ecuador. It included large cities, a road network, a recordkeeping system, and a multi-level hierarchy. In 1533, the Inca fell to a small group of Spaniards under the command of Francisco Pizarro.

Question 4

One way to track ancient disease __________.

A) involves the study of preserved stomach contents
B) is performed on bones only
C) uses polymerase chain reaction science
D) requires destruction of a large quantity of dental material

Question 5

________ was a system of knotted strings used by the Inca to record information.

A) Inti
B) Khipu
C) Pago
D) Tampu

Question 6

Which of the following describes roads in the Inca Empire?

A) They did not exist.
B) They were only passable by llama or alpaca.
C) They were used by relay messengers.
D) They were symbolic roads for the gods.

Question 7

In Inca society, feasting and exchanging goods __________.

A) was only for the ruler
B) played a central role for elites
C) was started by Atawallpa
D) was always associated with sacrifice

Question 8

What ceremonial outpost of the Inca Empire is located 600 kilometers north of the capital, Cuzco?

A) Tiwanaku
B) La Tisa
C) Hua'nuco Pampa
D) Aguas Caliente

Question 9

What is the study of the processes that affect organic remains after death?

A) paleoecology
B) zooarchaeology
C) necromodification
D) taphonmy

Question 10

The property of the Inca emperor became the property of his descendants, who were known as his __________.

A) panaqa
B) khipu
C) urubamba
D) pago

Question 11

Raised field agriculture __________.

A) was shown to not be that useful
B) was used at Tiwanaku
C) did not involve irrigation
D) was used only for root crops

Question 12

How did the Inca conduct warfare?

Question 13

What was the Moche state?

Question 14

What was the Nasca culture, and why was it important?

Question 15

What is Chavín de Huántar?

Question 16

What are khipu, and how do they compare with the methods that other early states used to keep records?

Question 17

How did the Inca build and maintain their empire?

Question 18

How have archaeologists interpreted the Nasca Lines?

Question 19

Discuss the Chavín de Huántar site and the Chavín horizon.

Question 20

Compare and contrast the Aztec and Inca empires.

Question 21

How has archaeology answered the question of whether tuberculosis was endemic or introduced to the Americas?

Question 22

What are the characteristics of an empire?

Question 23

The Inca empire fell to a small group of Spaniards under the command of __________.

A) Francisco Pizarro
B) Francisco Coronado
C) Hernan Cortez
D) Hernando de Soto

Question 24

Which of the following best characterizes Moche metallurgy?

A) Hammers were used to shape artifacts.
B) It is known for is strong iron spear points.
C) The only material used by the Moche was gold.
D) It was only used for utilitarian items.

Question 25

Even when rulers were dead, their mummified bodies exerted power.

Question 26

Feasting and exchanging goods played a central role in Inca society.

Question 27

Machu Picchu was a royal estate of the Inca elite.

Question 28

The son, who became the new ruler after the emperor died, inherited all of his father's property.

Question 29

The history of the Inca is a long one of orderly succession of the ruling elite, which peacefully expanded the empire through trade and alliances.

Question 30

The resistance that the Inca were able to mount against the Spanish invaders points to the resilience of an empire built around a divine ruler.

Question 31

The Inca Empire is known as Tawantinsuyu, which means "Land of High Places."

Question 32

The Nasca Lines are deliberate designs made by moving rocks on the desert surface.

Question 33

The site of Chavín de Huántar represents a major turning point in Andean social complexity.

Question 34

The Staff God is a recurring motif throughout Andean prehistory.

Question 35

Inca roads could be up to 4 meters wide, and involved ingenious bridges for people and animals to use.

Question 36

The Inca kept track of commercial transactions by a pictographic writing known as khipu.

Question 37

The Inca Empire was known as __________.

A) Tawantinsuyu
B) Atawallpa
C) Tiwanaku
D) Waskhar

Question 38

Political entities that bring together a diverse and heterogeneous group of societies under one ruler are called __________.

A) states
B) chiefdoms
C) coalitions
D) empires

Question 39

Which of the following statements describes Nasca polychrome pottery?

A) It was reserved for members of the elite.
B) It is found widely distributed around the Nasca area.
C) It was traded from Mesoamerica.
D) It was not made of clay.

Question 40

The intact tomb of a Moche elite found at __________ illustrates the wealth of the Moche society.

A) Chavín de Huántar
B) Nasca
C) Cuzco
D) Sipán

Question 41

What is the presumed function of the famed Nasca Lines?

A) processions or observations
B) landing strips for extraterrestrial aircraft
C) human sacrifice
D) territorial markings

Question 42

What was the Lanzón?

A) the core of the temple at Chavín de Huántar
B) the leader of the Nasca
C) the raised fields used in the Andean highlands
D) the system of knotted string used to keep records

Question 43

Which of the following statements describes Chavín de Huántar?

A) It is a simple village site in the South American rain forest.
B) It was the capital of the Inca Empire.
C) It was the burial site of the ʺLord of Sipán.ʺ
D) It is a ceremonial site that documents the beginning of social complexity in the Andes.

Question 44

The use of staffs today continues an Andean tradition that __________.

A) was borrowed from Amazonian peoples
B) is a marker of political office
C) is a relatively new phenomenon
D) was introduced by the Spanish

Question 45

A Cotton Preceramic Period ceremonial center that preceded the Inca was established in the Andes by 900 B.C. at what location?

A) Chavín de Huántar
B) Moche
C) Cuzco
D) Nasca

Question 46

Soft tissue does not preserve well at Andean archaeological sites.

Question 47

The Cotton Preceramic ceremonial center was at Machu Picchu.