Shangri-La
Who wrote the novel Lost Horizon, which introduced the fictional paradise of Shangri-La?
A) Aldous Huxley
B) James Hilton
C) George Orwell
D) Edward Bellamy
B) James Hilton
What does the name "Eldorado" originally mean?
A) The Hidden City
B) The Lost Empire
C) The Gilded One
D) The Golden River
C) The Gilded One
Who first described the legend of Atlantis?
A) Homer
B) Herodotus
C) Plato
D) Aristotle
C) Plato
Which lost civilization is famous for its large stone heads on Easter Island?
A) The Maya
B) The Khmer
C) The Rapa Nui
D) The Mississippians
C) The Rapa Nui
In Arthurian legend, what is Avalon best known for?
A) Birthplace of King Arthur
B) Location of the Round Table
C) Island where Arthur was taken to be healed
D) Site of Merlin’s tomb
C) Island where Arthur was taken to be healed
Which real-life Tibetan myth is thought to have inspired Hilton’s description of Shangri-La?
A) Atlantis
B) Shambhala
C) Nirvana
D) Shangaan
B) Shambhala
Where was the legendary ruler of Eldorado believed to bathe after being covered in gold dust?
A) Amazon River
B) Lake Guatavita
C) Lake Titicaca
D) Orinoco River
B) Lake Guatavita
According to legend, where was Atlantis located?
A) East of the Aegean Sea
B) North of the Amazon River
C) Beyond the Pillars of Hercules
D) Inside the Arctic Circle
C) Beyond the Pillars of Hercules
What was the largest city of the Mississippians, located near modern-day Illinois?
A) Cahokia
B) Tenochtitlán
C) Harappa
D) Çatalhöyük
A) Cahokia
Who ruled Avalon according to Geoffrey of Monmouth?
A) Guinevere
B) Morgan le Fay
C) Lady of the Lake
D) Nimue
B) Morgan le Fay
Who coined the word "Utopia" and published a book with that title in 1516?
A) Francis Bacon
B) Thomas More
C) Jonathan Swift
D) Tommaso Campanella
B) Thomas More
Which English explorer searched for the golden city of Manoa in the Orinoco lowlands in 1595?
A) Hernán Cortés
B) Francisco Pizarro
C) Sir Walter Raleigh
D) Vasco Núñez de Balboa
C) Sir Walter Raleigh
What natural disaster supposedly caused Atlantis to sink into the sea?
A) Volcanic eruption and tsunami
B) Massive flood
C) Ice age
D) Sandstorm
A) Volcanic eruption and tsunami
Which lost civilization is known for its hivelike rooftop-entry housing in ancient Turkey?
A) Maya
B) Indus
C) Çatalhöyük
D) Khmer
C) Çatalhöyük
Why did King Arthur have a round table made, according to legend?
A) To honor the Grail
B) To symbolize the cycle of the seasons
C) So no knight could claim precedence over another
D) To display ancient runes
C) So no knight could claim precedence over another
Which U.S. president originally named the presidential retreat “Shangri-La”?
A) Theodore Roosevelt
B) Franklin D. Roosevelt
C) Dwight D. Eisenhower
D) Woodrow Wilson
B) Franklin D. Roosevelt
Which two legendary cities became associated with the expanded idea of Eldorado as a golden kingdom?
A) Quivira and Atlantis
B) Cíbola and Santiago
C) Manoa and Omagua
D) Shambhala and Cuzco
C) Manoa and Omagua
Which historical volcanic eruption may have inspired the Atlantis legend?
A) Mount Vesuvius
B) Krakatoa
C) Thera (Santorini)
D) Mauna Loa
C) Thera (Santorini)
Which ancient civilization had a vast canal and road system in its capital, Angkor?
A) Harappan
B) Khmer
C) Mississippian
D) Rapa Nui
B) Khmer
What was the purpose of the "Siege Perilous" at the Round Table?
A) It was Arthur's personal seat
B) It marked the location of the Grail
C) It symbolized the betrayal of Lancelot
D) It could only be occupied by the destined Grail hero
D) It could only be occupied by the destined Grail hero
Which 19th-century utopian community practiced “complex marriage” and communal child-rearing?
A) Brook Farm
B) New Harmony
C) Oneida Community
D) Ephrata Cloister
C) Oneida Community
Who was the Spanish conquistador who founded Bogotá and later explored eastward in search of Eldorado?
A) Pedro de Valdivia
B) Gonzalo Pizarro
C) Sebastián de Benalcázar
D) Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada
D) Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada
Which ancient Athenian lawgiver was said to have learned about Atlantis from Egyptian priests?
A) Draco
B) Solon
C) Pericles
D) Lycurgus
B) Solon
Which theory is most commonly suggested for the collapse of the Indus (Harappan) civilization?
A) Invasion by the Huns
B) Climate change and resulting famine
C) Overpopulation and civil war
D) Tsunami from a nearby eruption
D) Tsunami from a nearby eruption
Which king received the Round Table from King Leodegran as part of a dowry?
A) Uther Pendragon
B) King Arthur
C) King Lot
D) Sir Gawain
B) King Arthur