Ancient Mediterranean World
Exam One (Fall 2013)
First Exam: HIS121
Dr. Robinson Yost
Please Read: Be sure to LABEL each section. Do not merely collect & list specific facts or spin a web of vague,
unsupported generalizations. Use specific details & examples from class & readings to support your arguments
with evidence. DEMONSTRATE that you have understood the readings & documentaries, do NOT copy
information from your notes/handouts. Use your time wisely to COMPLETE ALL SECTIONS of the exam.
I. Identifications (30 pts.)
Choose THREE (25-30 minutes)
Identifications should include the following: who, what, when, where, and, MOST IMPORTANTLY, the historical
significance/context. You should write ONE page for each ID. Write in complete sentences & paragraphs.
Hittites
Narmer Palette
San rock art
Ötzi
II. Quotations (20 pts.)
Zoroastrianism
Amarna
Documentary Hypothesis
Assyrians
Step Pyramid
Linear B
Exodus
Minotaur
Choose TWO (16-20 minutes)
See instructions for identifications above. Do not merely summarize or re-state the quote. Write ONE page for
each quote. Read the ENTIRE QUOTE carefully & be as specific as possible.
1) So the goddess conceived an image in her mind, and it was of the stuff of Anu of the firmament. She
dipped her hands in water and pinched off clay, she let it fall in the wilderness, and noble Enkidu was
created. There was virtue in him of the god of war, of Ninurta himself. His body was rough, he had long
hair like a woman’s; it waved like the hair of Nisaba, the goddess of corn. His body was covered with
matted hair like Samuqan’s, the god of cattle. He was innocent of mankind; he knew nothing of the
cultivated land.
2) When I entered Babylon as a friend and (when) I established the seat of the government in the palace of
the ruler under jubilation and rejoicing, Marduk, the great lord, [induced] the magnanimous inhabitants of
Babylon [to love me], and I was daily endeavouring to worship him. My numerous troops walked around in
Babylon in peace, I did not allow anybody to terrorize (any place) of the [country of Sumer] and Akkad. I
strove for peace in Babylon . . .
3) Then God spoke all these words, saying, “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of
Egypt, out of the house of slavery. “You shall have no other gods before Me. “You shall not make for
yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under
the earth. “You shall not worship them or serve them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting
the iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third and the fourth generations of those who hate Me…
4) When you dawn their eyes observe you, as your rays light the whole earth; every heart acclaims your sight,
when you are risen as their lord. When you set in sky’s western lightland. Their arms adore your ka, as you
nourish the hearts by your beauty…
5) Behold, the holy ordinance (valid) forever which the Sun-god and the Storm-god had brought about for the
land of Egypt with the Hatti land (calls for) peace and brotherhood so as not to make hostility between
them…Behold, the land of Egypt (in its relation) with the Hatti land—they are at peace and brothers forever.
6) If a seignior brought a charge of sorcery against another seignior, but has not proved it, the one against
whom the charge of sorcery was brought, upon going to the river, shall throw himself into the river, and if
the river has then overpowered him, his accuser shall take over his estate... If a seignior has destroyed the
eye of a member of the aristocracy, they shall destroy his eye. If he has broken another seignior’s bone,
they shall break his bone. If he has destroyed the eye of a commoner or broken the bone of a commoner,
he shall pay one mina of silver.
III. Multiple-Choice (50 points) [ANGEL]
50 Questions (120 minutes)
The other 50% of the exam will be administered online around the same time in the course calendar as
in-class written exam. Format will be open-note, open-book & strictly timed (unless students have
accommodations, see syllabus).
The objective section of the exam will consist of multiple-choice questions over assigned reading
material from chapters in the textbook only. To minimize the chances of collaboration (i.e.,
cheating), questions will be selected randomly from a large test bank.
As with the written in-class section, this portion of the exam assumes that each student has:
 read the textbook carefully
 taken good notes
 reviewed notes & reading frequently as necessary
 asked questions as they arise
Guessing and procrastination will not work. Waiting until the last minute to “hunt-and-peck” through the
textbook won’t work either. The exam is strictly over textbook material, not “Googled” information found
online. Unfortunately, some will learn the hard way what works and what doesn’t.
Make-up policies apply as discussed in syllabus.
We will discuss more specifics regarding each part of the exam in class.