On this day in 1922, British archaeologist Howard Carter sent a telegraph to his sponsor announcing he had discovered an undisturbed tomb in Egypt’s Valley of the Kings. His discovery of Tutankhamun’s tomb stunned the world and revolutionized our understanding of Ancient Egypt. Children encounter Egypt and other ancient civilizations in the Core Knowledge Sequence beginning in first grade, both in history and in art. How much do you remember about Ancient Egypt? Here’s this week’s Core Knowledge Quiz:
1. What was the name given to the religious and political leader of Egypt?
2. Egyptians made a form of paper from fibers of a reed that grows in marshes along the Nile. What was it called?
3. What is the name for Egyptian writing that includes pictorial symbols?
4. This artifact, discovered in 1799, features the same text inscribed in three languages – Greek and two Egyptian languages – and enabled scholars to translate ancient Egyptian texts. What is it?
5. What feature of the Nile River enabled Egyptian farms to produce large amounts of food?
6. The Nile River empties into what body of water?
7. What is a canopic jar and what was its purpose?
8. Who was the Egyptian god of the afterlife?
9. What figure, featuring a human head on the body of a reclining lion, is a symbol of both modern and ancient Egypt?
10. Hatshepsut, one of the most successful pharaohs, expanded trade, grew the Egyptian economy, and built and restored many temples. What was unusual about Hatshepsut?
Answers below
1. Pharaoh
2. Papyrus
3. Hieroglyphics. There are about 500 symbols in hieroglyphics, a form of writing that dates back to 3200 BC.
4. The Rosetta Stone.
5. Annual floods, which left the Nile delta rich and fertile for farming.
6. The Mediterranean Sea.
7. During the process of mummification, internal organs of the deceased were placed in canopic jars. It was believed the dead would need the organs in the afterlife.
8. Osiris.
9. The Great Sphinx.
10. Hatshepsut was one of the few female rulers of Egypt.
Um, is 5/10 good or bad?
Fine. Unless you’re teaching history. And the fact that my 11-year old daughter went ten for ten shouldn’t trouble you. Nope. Not in the least.
I think I got 10/10 due more to Elizabeth Peters’ Amelia Peabody mysteries than to anything I learned in school.
My kid (and I) enjoyed this quiz greatly. I think each of us averaged 8/10. Could you have some more quizzes please?
She is not at a core knowledge school, but a Texas public school. I’ve tried to get her to include some ideas from the ‘Well Trained Mind’ particularly doing Ancient History in Grade 1, Medevial in Grade 1, Renaissance in Grade 3 and now Modern in Grade 4. Something is sinking in!
Click on the Core Knowledge Quiz tag underneath the title of the quiz at the top of the blog, and you’ll see all past quizzes.
Thank you – I’ve got all the quizzes now and we will do them from time to time. May I suggest a more prominent link to the Quiz Archive?