AROL 224 Final, Spring 2008

ARCHAEOLOGY 224 HELLENISTIC AND ROMAN ARCIIAEOLOGY FINAL EXAMINATION Monday, 24th June Time allowed: One and a half hours Answer THREE of the following questions. Do not spend more time on one question than another; half an hour should be sufficient for each. 1, What purpose did the structure illustrated below serve? Why were such structures needed? Some scholars have described them as “monuments to cheapness”. Do you agree with this judgement? 2. What sort of public buildings (EXCLUDING temples) would you expect to find in a typical Roman city in the Near East, and what regional variations might there be? Give some specific examples, and explain why the buildings were needed. 3. Describe the main architectural features of temples and temple sanctuaries in the Near East, with special reference to the temples at Baalbek. What aspects of religious and ritual activity might these features represent? 4. What was the purpose of the Roman army’s presence in the Near East? 5. Does the production of coinage in the Hellenistic and Roman worlds reflect a fully monetised economy? 6. “There is no branch of classical studies which is unaffected by inscriptions. There is no aspect of thought or speech, writing or action, on which they do not throw valuable light”. Is this a fair assessement of the importance of inscriptions? What sort of information do they tell us, and what sort of information do they NOT tell us? 7. How do you think Christianity took root in the Near East? To what sort of people did it appeal? Can it be termed a ‘popular religion’? 8. Write notes on the significance of TWO of the following for the Hellenistic and Roman Near East. a) imported stone b) asceticism c) road building d) pagan oracles