Archaeologists and Their Artifacts

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What is the Forma Urbis Romae or Severan Marble Plan?

A computer program devised by American researchers.

A collection of Roman artifacts found in a museum basement.

A giant jigsaw puzzle made of marble slabs depicting ancient Rome. (correct)

A modern archaeological tool used for excavation.

Why is the Forma Urbis Romae considered one of classical archaeology's great unsolved problems?

Because it contains encrypted messages that are yet to be deciphered.

Because it is made of material not easily scannable by computers.

Because no one knows where the map was originally located in ancient Rome.

Because it has hundreds of missing fragments that have never been found. (correct)

In what state is the Forma Urbis Romae currently?

Smashed and fragmented in a museum's basement. (correct)

Partially scanned and stored in a computer database.

Fully intact and displayed in a museum.

Lost and waiting to be discovered by archaeologists.

What role did Cardinal Alessandro Farnese play in relation to the Forma Urbis Romae?

He attempted to gather the surviving sections of the map in 1562. Signup and view all the answers

What methods do archaeologists still rely on despite modern technology like computers and x-rays?

Basic techniques such as digging and measuring. Signup and view all the answers

What approach did American researchers take to try to reconstruct the Forma Urbis Romae?

Scanning each individual block into a computer for 3-D reconstruction. Signup and view all the answers

What did the Italian Giovanni Belzoni admit to doing in his research?

Looting hundreds of ancient Egyptian tombs Signup and view all the answers

Why did Sir Leonard Woolley fill a small hole with liquid plaster during his excavation in the royal cemetery?

To create a mold of a preserved lyre Signup and view all the answers

What major advancement transformed the study of the past in the late 1940s according to the text?

Invention of C-14 or radiocarbon dating Signup and view all the answers

How did Willard Libby's invention of radiocarbon dating impact archaeology?

It allowed accurate dating of organic material up to 10,000 years old Signup and view all the answers

What is the significance of carbon-14 in radiocarbon dating?

It has a half-life of 5730 years Signup and view all the answers

How do archaeologists create a 3-D picture of a site through time?

By dividing the site into small squares and recording changes in sediment within each square Signup and view all the answers

What does ground penetrating radar help archaeologists to detect underground?

Different physical 'signatures' like buried buildings or bodies Signup and view all the answers

What is the primary purpose of mapping a site into small squares during an archaeological dig?

To create a structured way to record changes and findings Signup and view all the answers

What factor determines the placement of younger remains compared to older ones at a dig site?

Thickness of sediment layers Signup and view all the answers

What makes radiocarbon dating unreliable according to the text?

Being carried away by erosion after burial Signup and view all the answers

Archaeologists and Their Artifacts

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