HSC Ancient History Question Thread

[theyam]

hey guys,

I have my first assessment task for Ancient History, its on Pompeii and Herculaneum. It will be about public buildings and its an in class writing task. We get two sources.

The only hint we've gotten is a list of things to know: the location, why was it built, role in society, relevance of location, how did people interact with it, other sources relating to public buildings.

 The public buildings given by my teacher include:Forum, Temple of Jupiter, Temple of Apollo, Temple of Lares, The Temple of the Genius of Augustus, Macellum, The Edifice of Eumachia, Voting Hall, Municipal Offices, Basilica, Public Latrines, Palaestra, Theatres, Amphitheatres.

Can anyone give me some practice questions relating to the information I've just mentioned? My test is next week Friday.

Thank you guys!
From theyam

[sudodds]

hey guys,

I have my first assessment task for Ancient History, its on Pompeii and Herculaneum. It will be about public buildings and its an in class writing task. We get two sources.

The only hint we've gotten is a list of things to know: the location, why was it built, role in society, relevance of location, how did people interact with it, other sources relating to public buildings.

 The public buildings given by my teacher include:Forum, Temple of Jupiter, Temple of Apollo, Temple of Lares, The Temple of the Genius of Augustus, Macellum, The Edifice of Eumachia, Voting Hall, Municipal Offices, Basilica, Public Latrines, Palaestra, Theatres, Amphitheatres.

Can anyone give me some practice questions relating to the information I've just mentioned? My test is next week Friday.

Thank you guys!
From theyam

Hey! So obviously I'm not in your teachers head, so I'm not 100% sure how they plan on structuring this exam, but maybe you could try some of these?

1. Describe the religious significance of public buildings in Pompeii (sources: A a dedicatory plaque of the Temple of Isis. The plaque states that Numerius Popidus Celsinus provided the money to rebuild the temple after the earthquake., B the Temple of Jupiter.)

2. Outline the role and purpose of Public Buildings in Pompeii and Herculaneum (sources: C a plan of the Basilica in Pompeii, and D the palaestra of Herculaneum)

3. Describe the role of the Forum in Pompeii (sources: E, a plan of the Forum in Pompeii and Source B: Quote from Mary Beard; "Today Pompeii’s Forum is a rather barren and disappointing open space. In the paintings, we see it full of people about their business: a group of men consulting some (presumably) official notices; a schoolmaster who has installed his class under the colonnade (and is in the process of giving one child a very nasty beating); a family who seem to be choosing shoes from a cobbler’s stall; and a posh lady apparently giving some spare change to a beggar with a dog. It actually looks like a bustling city centre." )

[tina1395]

hi guys i have a question about the julio-claudians and the roman empire

i have an essay and the question is "To what extent did the role and responsibilities of the Senate change under the Julio-Claudian rulers?"
how do you answer these types of questions, and also did the role and responsibilites change a lot or not too much? because some of the sources ive read contradict each other.

thank you!

[sudodds]

hi guys i have a question about the julio-claudians and the roman empire

i have an essay and the question is "To what extent did the role and responsibilities of the Senate change under the Julio-Claudian rulers?"
how do you answer these types of questions, and also did the role and responsibilites change a lot or not too much? because some of the sources ive read contradict each other.

thank you!

Hey! Good question! This was actually from the 2017 HSC! With a question like that, imo you have two options - either you approach it according to the emperors (so chronologically detail the relationship between the Emperor of the time and the Senate, and how that affected their role and responsibilities), or you structure it according to how the role and responsibilities changed (imo the best way to structure this would be; administrational role and influence, respect received from Emperors, etc. etc.).

I would say that their role and responsibilities fluctuated greatly. It wasn't one shift to the other across the period, it was unique to each emperor, and even within each emperors rule inconsistent. For the most part, it can be said that;

Tiberius
Initially attempted to work with the Senate, however became frustrated by their "ineptitude". Some suggest that he would often just expect things to be done, without verbalising his expectations, which of course could be a factor. This resulted in growing apathy for his position, culminating in his retire to Capri. This shook up the Senate, because they went from being a governing body that was highly dependant upon the Emperor (under Augustus), to one that essentially had to do everything on their own.

Gaius
Initially positive, as he told the Senate that he wished to repair the relationship, and reflect Augustus' leadership, however after his mysterious illness, he drastically decreases senatorial powers, and spends much of his time just mocking/abusing senators.

Claudius
Tries his best to work with the Senate, but after years of abuse they are obstinate. They are frustrated with the Principate, and want to return to a republic. Overtime, rather than just deal with this obstinancy, Claudius transitions from the Senate to the Imperial Bureaucracy of Freedmen (and later his wives as well) for counsel and the administration of the empire, which severely wounds the ego of many senators who resented their position being offered to former slaves.

Nero
Similar to Gaius - when he's under the control of Agrippina, Seneca and Burrus, Gaius is pretty nice to the Senators. However, once their influence is gone, he becomes a monster to pretty much everyone.

Hope this helps get you started!

Susie

[theyam]

Hey! So obviously I'm not in your teachers head, so I'm not 100% sure how they plan on structuring this exam, but maybe you could try some of these?

1. Describe the religious significance of public buildings in Pompeii (sources: A a dedicatory plaque of the Temple of Isis. The plaque states that Numerius Popidus Celsinus provided the money to rebuild the temple after the earthquake., B the Temple of Jupiter.)

2. Outline the role and purpose of Public Buildings in Pompeii and Herculaneum (sources: C a plan of the Basilica in Pompeii, and D the palaestra of Herculaneum)

3. Describe the role of the Forum in Pompeii (sources: E, a plan of the Forum in Pompeii and Source B: Quote from Mary Beard; "Today Pompeii’s Forum is a rather barren and disappointing open space. In the paintings, we see it full of people about their business: a group of men consulting some (presumably) official notices; a schoolmaster who has installed his class under the colonnade (and is in the process of giving one child a very nasty beating); a family who seem to be choosing shoes from a cobbler’s stall; and a posh lady apparently giving some spare change to a beggar with a dog. It actually looks like a bustling city centre." )

Hi Susie!
Thank you so much your practice questions! I never learnt the Temple of Isis tho o.0
From theyam

[sudodds]

Hi Susie!
Thank you so much your practice questions! I never learnt the Temple of Isis tho o.0
From theyam

Oh really? That's interesting - it's quite an important public building! The Temple of Isis was the official place of worship for the Cult of Isis in Pompeii. What attracted many people to the Cult (and by extension, the Temple) was its inclusivity - slaves and women were invited to take part within their practices. The Cult is believed to be so significant, that after the earthquake of 62AD repairs began on the Temple of Isis before even the Temple of Jupiter!

[cxtti]

Hi all! How could I make "changing methods and contributions of nineteenth and twentieth century archaeologists " into 3 themes and "changing interpretations: impact of new research and technologies" into another three themes. My teacher is telling my class to theme my 10 marker but I don't understand how. Help?

[sudodds]

Hi all! How could I make "changing methods and contributions of nineteenth and twentieth century archaeologists " into 3 themes and "changing interpretations: impact of new research and technologies" into another three themes. My teacher is telling my class to theme my 10 marker but I don't understand how. Help?

Hey! For 'changing methods and contributions of nineteenth and twentieth century archaeologists', your themes could literally be the ways that they contributed, in the broadest sense. Think of the positives and negatives of excavation over the years, the most common practices or discoveries, etc. etc. For example, some themes that I can think of would be (these are not all the themes that you could look at, just the ones off the top of my head);

1. Systematic practices (eg. Top-Down excavation, numbering of houses, catalogued artefacts, photography etc. etc.)
2. Dramatisation (How and why archeologists contributed to dramatisation, eg. Maiuri and Bisel)
3. Conservation and Restoration v. Excavation (looking at more modern archeological practices - Fausto Zevi)

For 'changing interpretations, impact of new research and technologies', you would want to be looking at exactly that; impact. What are the various ways that new research and technology has prompted a change in interpretations of Pompeii and Herculaneum? Think about the specific ways in which our understanding changed. Notice any patterns? Off the top of my head, here are some ideas

1. Understanding of the health of residents in Pompeii and Herculaneum
2. Understanding of public and private buildings
3. Impact of the inclusion of broader studies (eg. Volcanology)

Hope this helps!

Susie

[cxtti]

Hey! For 'changing methods and contributions of nineteenth and twentieth century archaeologists', your themes could literally be the ways that they contributed, in the broadest sense. Think of the positives and negatives of excavation over the years, the most common practices or discoveries, etc. etc. For example, some themes that I can think of would be (these are not all the themes that you could look at, just the ones off the top of my head);

1. Systematic practices (eg. Top-Down excavation, numbering of houses, catalogued artefacts, photography etc. etc.)
2. Dramatisation (How and why archeologists contributed to dramatisation, eg. Maiuri and Bisel)
3. Conservation and Restoration v. Excavation (looking at more modern archeological practices - Fausto Zevi)

For 'changing interpretations, impact of new research and technologies', you would want to be looking at exactly that; impact. What are the various ways that new research and technology has prompted a change in interpretations of Pompeii and Herculaneum? Think about the specific ways in which our understanding changed. Notice any patterns? Off the top of my head, here are some ideas

1. Understanding of the health of residents in Pompeii and Herculaneum
2. Understanding of public and private buildings
3. Impact of the inclusion of broader studies (eg. Volcanology)

Hope this helps!

Susie

And so could I talk about
1. Systematic practices
- Top-Down excavations = Vittorio Spinazzola
- Numbering of Houses = Giuseppe Fiorelli
- Photography = Fausto Zevi

2. Dramatisation  —> Not really sure about what this means
- Amedeo Maiuri: Revealing as much as the site as possible but was destructive
- Sarah Bisel: ?
3. Conservation and Restoration v. Excavation
- Conservation:
    - International Cooperation = Having an emphasis on restoring and protecting areas of sites that are under close study
    - Fausto Zevi = Halting excavations and concentrated on restoring
- Excavation:
    - Carlo Bonnucci = Corrupt and incompetent, with no concern for the preservation but discovered the Forum and Stabian Baths, House of the Tragic Poet and Faun.

[sudodds]

And so could I talk about
1. Systematic practices
- Top-Down excavations = Vittorio Spinazzola
- Numbering of Houses = Giuseppe Fiorelli
- Photography = Fausto Zevi

2. Dramatisation  —> Not really sure about what this means
- Amedeo Maiuri: Revealing as much as the site as possible but was destructive
- Sarah Bisel: ?
3. Conservation and Restoration v. Excavation
- Conservation:
    - International Cooperation = Having an emphasis on restoring and protecting areas of sites that are under close study
    - Fausto Zevi = Halting excavations and concentrated on restoring
- Excavation:
    - Carlo Bonnucci = Corrupt and incompetent, with no concern for the preservation but discovered the Forum and Stabian Baths, House of the Tragic Poet and Faun.

Pretty much! Systematic practices is fine. Dramatisation is they way to describe the way in which the sites of Pompeii and Herculaneum have been dramatised - their is an emphasis on the narrative of Pompeii and Herculaneum, as they excavate with the intent on creating a good story. In terms of Maiuri, he did this to validate Italian exceptionalism, by creating a rich, exceptional history to aid Mussolini. Sarah Bisel was funded by the national geographic, and is responsible for making up backstories for human remains based upon little evidence (eg. ring lady). Both have been accused of tampering with evidence as well. Third one is fine, I might mention how they are utilising new technology such as x-rays and 3D animation to continue to "virtually" excavate, without actually touching/damaging the buildings.

Hope this helps

Susie

[tina1395]

hi,
im writing an essay on the julio claudians, and i need to include primary and secondary sources. Are quotes from tacitus, suetonius etc considered as primary or secondary sources?

[sudodds]

hi,
im writing an essay on the julio claudians, and i need to include primary and secondary sources. Are quotes from tacitus, suetonius etc considered as primary or secondary sources?

They are secondary sources, as they have been written many years after the events in question! Just because their ancient, doesn't make them primary sources - for those, you'd want to be looking at archeological evidence (eg. numismatic evidence, statues, art, official inscriptions, etc. etc. )

[tina1395]

They are secondary sources, as they have been written many years after the events in question! Just because their ancient, doesn't make them primary sources - for those, you'd want to be looking at archeological evidence (eg. numismatic evidence, statues, art, official inscriptions, etc. etc. )

thank youu!

[tina1395]

another question-
how do you properly answer to what extent questions?

[sudodds]

another question-
how do you properly answer to what extent questions?

With a "to what extent" question, you need to be answering just that! To what extent/how much was blah a critical factor, or contribute to change, or was significant etc. etc. What is important to note with this type of question, is that there is always an assumed degree of say significance. For example, with the question "To what extent was Claudius an effective Princeps", their is already an assumed degree of effectiveness, so saying "Claudius was effective" or "Claudius was ineffective" doesn't answer the question. Instead, you'd have to say "Claudius was highly effective" or "Claudius was effective to a limited extent", in order to properly answer a "to what extent" question!

Hope this makes sense

Susie