Cities of Vesuvius
This term describes the naturally occurring phenomenon that preserved Pompeii and Herculaneum on 24 August AD 79.
Pyroclastic surge/flow.
Name the THREE bodies that formed the Spartan government.
Ephorate (ephors), Gerousia, and Ekklesia (assembly).
Name the two other members of the First Triumvirate alongside Julius Caesar.
Pompey (Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus) and Crassus (Marcus Licinius Crassus)
'Though some have written that when Marcus Brutus rushed at him, he said in Greek, "You too, my child?"' - Who wrote this?
Suetonius
This term describes the human-shaped cavities at Pompeii, which Giuseppe Fiorelli filled with plaster in the 1860s to reveal victims of the eruption.
Casts (plaster casts of the victims)
Name TWO types of written sources that scholars use to investigate life at Pompeii and Herculaneum.
Any two of: graffiti, official inscriptions, ancient writers (e.g. Pliny the Younger), wax tablets
What was the name of the rigorous Spartan training and education system, and from what age did boys enter it?
The agoge; boys entered at approximately age 7
This battle in 52 BC was the climactic Roman siege during Caesar's Gallic Wars.
The Siege of Alesia
This ancient author wrote two letters describing the eruption of Vesuvius in AD 79, providing the most detailed eyewitness account we possess.
Pliny the Younger (Letters to Tacitus, Books VI.16 and VI.20)
In Spartan society, this group of free non-citizens handled trade and manufacturing — a role Spartiates were forbidden to perform.
The perioikoi ('dwellers around')
Describe the role of the forum in the economy of Pompeii, referring to at least one specific feature of the site.
The forum functioned as the civic and commercial centre; housed markets (macellum), temples, administrative buildings, and served as the hub for trade and commerce
Identify TWO methods the Spartans used to control the helot population.
Any two of: the krypteia (secret police/terror raids), the syssitia (communal messes reinforcing military cohesion), annual declaration of war on helots, the army as a deterrent
Identify TWO reforms or policies Caesar implemented during his dictatorship.
Any two of: reform of the calendar (Julian calendar), extension of Roman citizenship, debt relief measures, redistribution of land, reorganisation of the Senate, regulation of grain dole, public works
"Then, like one who casts himself from a precipice into a yawning abyss, he closed the eyes of reason and put a veil between them and his peril, and calling out in Greek to the bystanders these words only, "Let the die be cast," he set his army across" - Who wrote this passage?
Plutarch
True or False: Julius Caesar was officially crowned King of Rome.
False.
Explain ONE key ethical issue associated with the excavation or conservation of Pompeii and Herculaneum.
Display/treatment of human remains (casts), looting of artefacts, decontextualisation of finds, consent and dignified treatment of victims
Assess the status and freedoms of Spartan women compared to women in other Greek poleis, using at least ONE specific example.
Spartan women had greater freedoms than in Athens: they could own and inherit land, received physical education, could speak publicly. Evidence includes Plutarch/Aristotle's accounts and archaeological representations (bronze statuette); contrast with Athenian women confined to the oikos
Explain the key motives behind the assassination of Julius Caesar on the Ides of March, 44 BC.
Conspiracy led by Brutus and Cassius; motives include fear of monarchy/permanent dictatorship, wounded dignitas of senators, personal rivalry, and ideological commitment to the Republic. Caesar's acceptance of honours approaching divine status fuelled concern.
“Just when Pompeii was being rediscovered, it began to die it’s second death” - Who said this?
Henry de Saint-Blanquat
Name the international body whose conventions govern the conservation and protection of sites like Pompeii and Herculaneum.
UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation).
"The so-called 'Villa of the Mysteries' outside Pompeii's walls takes its name from a continuous frieze in one room. What is the leading scholarly interpretation of what this frieze depicts?"
the frieze is thought to show sequential stages of a mystery cult ritual involving Dionysus/Bacchus, though this interpretation remains debated; some scholars read it as purely mythological rather than documentary of actual cult practice
"According to the Great Rhetra, what was the name of the religious sanctuary at which the Spartan constitution was supposedly established, and which god was it dedicated to?"
The sanctuary of Apollo at Delphi.
"Caesar was nominated for this Roman priesthood from age 16, which was politically significant because it connected him to the populares tradition and gave him early public visibility in Rome."
Flamen Dialis.
"This work by Xenophon is one of our most detailed ancient accounts of Spartan society and customs, though modern historians note it uncritically idealises the Spartan system. Name the work."
Constitution of the Lacedaemonians (Lakedaimonion Politeia).
"The eruption of Vesuvius in AD 79 destroyed at least four settlements, not just Pompeii and Herculaneum. Name ONE other settlement buried or significantly damaged."
Stabiae (Castellammare di Stabia) or Oplontis (Torre Annunziata)