| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| A wise king of Crete named Rhadamanthus [[rah-dah-MAHN-thus]] claimed that eating common meals and attending this specific facility were key in separating Cretans from the plains people of Greece like the Thessalians. These facilities often were adjoined to and funded the Palaestra [[pah-lah-EH-strah]], a wrestling and boxing school. This name is derived from the Greek words for "nude exercise." Only male citizens were allowed to attend, for the point, what training facilities to practice for public games in Ancient Greek poleis? | Gymnasium |
| This minister conducted a debate with the Duke of Shao known as the "Jun Shi," where this figure outlined how a king is only as strong as his advisors. This man is credited with a namesake book of Rites that outlined bureaucratic organization, and he is also credited with inventing yayue music. In order to discredit the Shang Dynasty, this nobleman outlined how the "Mandate of Heaven" could be lost due to poor governance. The I Ching and the Book of Poetry are credited to, for the point, what Chinese culture hero, the brother of King Wu. | Duke of Zhou (accept Dan; Duke Wen of Zhou) |
| Isaak Walraven painted a scene depicting the death of this man, who claimed that he did not, in fact, die childless since his two major victories were his daughters. Cleombrotus was killed at one of those battles won by this man, who was a close friend of Pelopidas. The earliest known use of the oblique order occurred during this man's 371 BCE victory at the Battle of Leuctra, which preceded his victory at Mantinea. Leading a series of campaigns against Sparta, for the point, who was this innovative general from Thebes? | Epaminondas |
| The father of this man was a prophet who shares his name with the father of Esau’s wife Judith. This son of Beeri served under Jeroboam II had a daughter named Lo-ruhamah and a son named Lo-ammi, the latter of which is translated to “not my people.” In this man's namesake book, the Lord asks "Where is your king now / to save you in all your cities"? This first of the Twelve Minor prophets married a woman who he knew would be unfaithful in order to symbolize the break between God and Israel. For the point, name this “prophet of doom” who married the harlot Gomer. | Hosea |
| Some historians argue that this language was the first used to write the Quran [[KOH- rahn]] due to textual issues, and the Church of the East used this language for its liturgy. Edessa was a major site of learning in this language which, along with Greek and Coptic, was one of the dominant languages of the Eastern Roman Empire. For the point, what is this language, a dialect of Aramaic [[ah-rah-MAY-ehk]] that has a similar name to a country governed from Damascus? | Syriac (prompt on "Syrian"; prompt on "Aramaic" until mentioned) |
| A prince of this people named Anat-har was identified by historian Jürgen von Beckerath as the first head of the 16th dynasty. This people's ruler Apopis [[ah-POH-pihs]] attempted to make an alliance with the Nubian Kush people during the Theban revolt. This people, who established their capital at Avaris, were known as the "king-shepherds" by the subjugated Egyptians, and they were wrongly attributed as the biblical Hebrews by Josephus [[joh-SEE-fuhs]]. The Second Intermediate Period of Egypt was caused by an invasion by, for the point, what chariot-driving Semitic people? | Hyksos [[HIK-sohs]] |
| John Lydus wrote a treatise dedicated to this office, whose employees were split into a legal department and a finance department. This office employed an "indiction" system to estimate yearly budgets. This office reached a recognizable late antique form upon the death of Constantine, who likely established this office to assist his sons in ruling their respective divisions of the empire. For the point, what is this office held by men such as John the Cappadocian, whose holders served as the chief financial magistrate of a particular area of the Roman Empire, originally commanding a certain imperial guard? | Praetorian Prefect (or praefectus praetorio; prompt on partial answer; prompt on "Praetorian Guard") |
| Pseudo-historian Erich von Däniken claimed golden disks located below this man in one relief were in fact rockets provided by ancient aliens in Chariot of the Gods. This man, who was known as "the Sun Shield" before his name was deciphered, twice defeated the rival city of Kaan in his youth and had a funeral mask made of jade found in his Temple of Inscriptions. The Palace of Palenque [[pah-LEHN-keh]] was constructed by, for the point, what "Great" Mayan ajaw of the Classical period who ruled for nearly seven decades? | Pacal the Great (accept Kʼinich Janaabʼ Pakal) |
| To celebrate the defeat of a king with this name, the Amphictyonic [[ahm-fik-TYAH- nik]] League held the Soteria festival in Delphi. Following that ruler with this name's death, the remnants of his army fled Greece and settled the namesake region of Galatia [[gah-LAY- shuh]] in central Anatolia. A ruler of this name supposedly said "Woe to the Vanquished" after Roman nobles claimed he was using a faulty scale to weigh the Roman tribute. The 390 BCE sack of Rome was conducted by, for the point, which Gallic chief of the Senones [[seh-NOH- nehs]]? | Brennus (accept Brennos) |
| A ruler of this name ordered his masons to inscript the Great Sphinx of Giza with the Dream Stele, which legitimized that king's rule after usurping the throne from his sibling Amenhotep II. The queen Hatshepsut [[haht-SHEP-soot]] jointly ruled with a nephew of this name, who likely brought the Egyptian Empire to its greatest extent following incursions into Nubia and the Levant. Four New Kingdom Pharaohs from the 18th dynasty have, for the point, what name derived from the phrase "Son of Thoth"? | Thutmose (accept Thutmose III or Thutmose IV; accept Dhwtj-ms; or Thutmoses; or Thothmes) |
| The Tang Dynasty conquered this region's cities of Kucha and Khotan in an early 630s campaign. This region, whose Kingdom of Shule [SHOO-LUH]] spoke Saka, a variant of Scythian, was home to Indo-European Tocharians and Ancient North Eurasians, whose mummies have been unearthed in Loulan. This region gradually became Turkic after the fall of the Uyghur Khaganate, and was Islamized in a 1006 conquest by the Karakhanids. For the point, name this enormous basin, the southern region of Xinjiang [[SIN-JANG]]. | Tarim Basin (accept Altishahr; accept Kashgaria; prompt on "Xinjiang") |
| Before taking the throne, this monarch was appointed as tribune of the Scutarii [[skoo-TAH-ree]] and was ordered to garrison Ancyra [[ahn-KEE-rah]]. The Colossus of Barletta is thought to depict this monarch, who sent Theodosius the Elder to defeat the Great Conspiracy in Britain. This monarch died during a heated meeting with the Quadi, meaning he could not answer the call by his brother to help push Goths back across the Danube. For the point, who was this Western Roman Emperor, father of Gratian [[GRAH-shehn]] and brother of Valens? | Valentinian I |
| This man's armies emerged victorious at Panormus and Eryx [[EH-riks]], but were pushed out by a privately funded fleet at the Aegates [[ah-GEH-tees]] Islands. Two people who served under this man, Spendius and Mathos, organized a revolt against him called the Mercenary War. This man founded the city of Cartago Nova during his conquest of Iberia, and legendarily founded the city of Barcelona in his name. One of this man's sons fell to the forces of Scipio Africanus at Zama. For the point, who was this Carthaginian general, the father of Hasdrubal and Hannibal? | Hamilcar Barca |
| Liu Yuan, a member of this ethnic group, founded the Former Zhao [[ZHOH]] Dynasty in China. In 176 BC, these people forced the Yuezhi into a westward migration following a battle in Gansu, after which their Chanyu, Laoshang, made a drinking cup out of his rival's skull. This nomadic people, which were succeeded by the Xianbei [[ZHEE-AHN-BEH]], may have spoken a Yeniseian language, but have more often been connected to the Huns. For the point, name this ethnic group that was defeated by the Han Dynasty in 89 AD. | Xiongnu [[ZHEE-OHNG-NOO]] (prompt on "Hun") |
| Simon of Athens inspired this writer to dedicate a two-part treatise on the preparation of both war and parade horses in De re equestri. It's not Herodotus, but this man recounts one ruler's ill fated expedition against the Massagetae [[mah-sah-GEH-teh]] tribe of the Transoxiana region and the defeat of Croesus in his Cyroaedia. A tale of the ten thousand Greek mercenaries returning from an expedition to Mesopotamia occurs in, for the point which Ancient Greek soldier and historian's Anabasis? | Xenophon [[ZEH-noh-fawn]] |
| The Colossus of Rhodes was erected after the son of one of these figures failed to take the city. That one of these figures, who died at the Battle of Ipsus, had an epithet meaning "One-Eyed," and fought against another one of these figures with the epithet "Soter." Some of these men were somatophylakes [[soh-mah-toh-FYE-loh-kehs]] of a man who reportedly left his realm "to the strongest." For the point, name this group of "successors" of Alexander the Great who fought one another in namesake wars. | Diadochi (accept Diadochus; prompt on "successors to Alexander the Great" or equivalent descriptions before "successors" is mentioned) |
| One of these people's kings, Madyes, defeated and murdered the Median king Phraortes [[frah-OHR-tees]], leading to a 28-year hegemony over Central Asia. The Neo- Assyrian empire invited a subset of this people to settle parts of Asia Minor under the condition that they defeat the Cimmerians and Treres tribes who had earlier sacked Sardis. It's not the Sarmatians, but the common deployment of female warriors by this culture likely led to Greek myths about the Amazons. For the point, name this Iranian nomadic people of the Pontic Steppe of present-day Ukraine and southern Russia. | Scythians [[SITH-yens]] (accept Ishkuzai; accept Askuzai; accept Sakae) |
| The general Eudemus [[yoo-DEH-muhs]] treacherously killed this king during the War of the Diodochi [[dee-oh-DOH-kee]], while this non-Hellenistic man is recorded as leading a contingent of the soldiers of Heracles by Megathenes [[meh-GAS-theh-nees]]. An ally of Taxiles commanded him to force this monarch, who was perched atop his tallest elephant, to surrender, resulting in this man chucking a spear at Taxiles. The Battle of Hydaspes was lost by, for the point, what ancient Indian king turned satrap of Alexander the Great? | King Porus (accept Parvataka; Editor's Note: Porus is yet unidentified in Indian sources, so any Indian name equivalent is up for debate.) |
| After Julia Doman's fall from grace, one ruler of this dynasty declared a Damnatio memoriae following the assassination of his co-emperor and sibling, Geta. With the assistance of prefect Quintus Aemilius Laetus, this dynasty's namesake emperor came to power following the chaotic "Year of the Five Emperors." The period preceding the "Crisis of the 3rd Century" was dominated by, for the point, what Roman dynasty of Caracalla and Septimius? | Severan Dynasty |
| The Daya River flowed through this kingdom containing the city of Dhauli. This coastal region is sometimes noted as being bound by the Godavari and Mahanadi rivers. A ruler named Priyadarsi [[pree-yah-DAHR-see]] was said to have conquered this kingdom in the thirteenth document of one type. Corresponding with modern day Odisha, this kingdom was where one army allegedly experienced 150,000 casualties, prompting a Buddhist emperor to promote ahimsa, or nonviolence. For the point, name this kingdom that fought a devastating war with Ashoka. | The Kingdom of Kalinga |
| The fear that an opposing side's horses had upon seeing the elephants of this empire contributed to its victory at the Battle of the Bridge. Despite being defeated by Gordian III, a leader of this empire later forced Philip the Arab into an unfavorable treaty. Shapur I was a co-regent under Ardashir [[ahr-DAH-sheer]] I during this empire, whose rulers held the title shahanshah. Ahura Mazda was worshiped by this empire, whose state religion was Zoroastrianism. For the point, name this Persian empire contemporaneous to the late Roman Empire and which succeeded the Parthians. | Sassanid Empire (accept Sasanian Empire; accept Neo-Persia Empire; accept Ērānšahr; prompt on "Empire of Iranians") |
| A king from the western reaches of this region, Syphax [[SEE-faks]], led his tribe, the Masaesyli [[mah-SAY-"silly"]] in support of Hasdrubal's war effort in the Second Punic War. A nephew of Micispa [[mih-KIH-spah]] and king of this region said that Rome was "a city for sale and doomed to quick destruction," and he was captured by Gaius Marius. A Roman province named for this region lied between Africa Proconsularis and Mauretania. Masinissa [[mah-see-NIH-sah]] and Jugurtha were kings of, for the point, which North African region populated by a namesake Berber people? | Numidia (accept Numidians; prompt on "Berbers"; prompt on "Mauritanians" before mentioned) |
| The first certain reference to this people came in a speech of Julian, who said they were allies of Magnentius [[mahg-NEHN-shuhs]]. Two leaders of this people, Hengist and Horsa, were temporarily employed by Vortigern before turning on him. This people's conquest of a certain area was bemoaned by Gildas, who also wrote that this people were defeated at a place called Mons Badonicus by Ambrosius Aurelianus, often cited as the first hints of the Arthurian legend. For the point, what people conquered much of southwestern England along with the Angles? | Saxons (accept Anglo-Saxons, although the first clue does not strictly apply to them) |
| This man attempted to expel an Athenian diplomatic mission which included the philosopher Diogenes of Seleucia and other members of the Peripatetic school due to their dangerous philosophy. This man, who was a Novus Homo, inspired housewives to don luxury goods and parade through the streets after he supported the Oppian Law, a wealth tax. This conservative Roman senator, known as the "Censor," wrote letters condemning Scipio's extravagance during the Africa campaign. The phrase "Carthago Delenda Est" ended the speeches of, for the point, which conservative Roman statesman? | Marcus Porcius Cato (accept Cato the Elder or Cato the Censor; do not accept "Cato the Younger") |
| According to a Chinese adage about the need to raise children well, this person's mother moved three times before he was born. One of the "Four Books and Five Classics" is named after this person and collects conversations between this person and rulers of his time. Unlike his contemporary Xunzi, this thinker believed humans are inherently good. For the point, name this person, the "second sage" whose importance in shaping Confucianism is considered second only to Confucius himself. | Mencius (also accept Meng Ke or Mengzi) |
| These soldiers, who were often accompanied by light skirmishers called psiloi, used a technique called the "Pushing of the Shields." The epilékoi [[eh-pee-LOH-koy]] was an elite subset of these soldiers known as the "Chosen," while the taxiarchoi [[tak-see-AHR-koy]] was a system electing officers among its ranks. A type of small, circular shield and the accompanying armor names these specific soldiers. The basic citizen-soldier of the polis was, for the point, what Greek heavy infantry who used the phalanx formation? | Hoplites (prompt on "phalanx" before mentioned) |
| This man and Quintus Caecilius Metellus Pius put down the revolt of Sertorius. The Lex Gabinia granted this victor at the Battle of Dyrrhachium a navy to defeat the Cilician pirates in just three months. This man, who gained the support of the Optimates, was beheaded on the orders of Ptolemy XIII [[the Thirteenth]] after his defeat at the Battle of Pharsalus. For the point, name this Roman general who made up the First Triumvirate with Crassus and Julius Caesar. | Pompey the Great (accept Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus) |
| A ruler of this name hired the architect Pinotetl to redesign his garden in Huaxtepec [[hwax-TEH-pek]], and his conquest of Panuco led to his empire having access to ocean. The second ruler of this name built a personal palace called the "Casas Nuevas," while this tlatoani [[tlah-toh-AH-nee]] led a protracted invasion of Tlaxcala [[tlaks-KAH-lah]]. That ruler of this name may have died to his own Pipiltin nobles in Tenochtitlan. Hernan Cortes wrongfully believed much of central Mexico was ceded to the Spanish by a ruler of, for the point, what name belonging to the last independent Aztec emperor? | Moctezuma (accept Moctezuma I; or Moctezuma II) |
| Jacques Carrey is best-known for a set of illustrations of this building that was badly damaged in 1687 during the Morean War. During one event, this location was where girls known as the [a]arrephoroi[/i] [[ah-reh-FOH-roy]] were thought to have woven a garment known as the [[ah-reh-FOH-roy]] were thought to have woven a garment known as the peplos. Serving as a treasury like similar buildings, many of this building's pieces were relocated to the British Museum. Those marbles from this site are named for Lord Elgin. This example of Periclean [[peh-rih-KLEH-ehn]] architecture was built on the Acropolis. For the point, name this temple in Athens. | Parthenon (accept Parthenonas) |
| Antipater of Sidon compiled a list of items that are similar to this group. One item in this group was built by Artemisia [[ahr-teh-ME-see-ah]] II of Caria as a tomb for her late husband and brother. Another item in this group was a statue to Helios erected in honor of the successful defeat of an Antigonid [[ahn-TIH-goh-nihd]] invasion. The oldest item in this group is also the only one that still exists. For the point, name this group, which also includes a lighthouse and a terraced garden. | The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World (accept The Seven Sights of the Ancient World) |
| One of these places in Shintoism used a technique called the Futomani, which involves heating the shoulder blade of stags and observing the cracks. Alexander the Great traveled to one of these locales in the Siwa Oasis, which confirmed his claim as Pharaoh of Egypt. Another of these places in the Temple of Apollo was run by the "Pythia," a high priestess who often spoke in gibberish. For the point, name these ancient sites of divination, including one in the polis of Delphi. | Oracles (accept Oracle of Delphi; prompt on "Temple" or "Divination"; prompt on descriptive answers that don't mention "Oracle") |