Rosetta Stone

The Ptolemys kept their Greek culture, including their language, but they also respected the customs and religious beliefs of the native Egyptians. So it was only natural for the priests’ statement to have been carved in both Greek and Egyptian on the Rosetta Stone.

What signal word helps readers identify evidence of a cause-and-effect relationship in this excerpt?

• but

• also

• so

• and

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Based on The Riddle of the Rosetta Stone, which sentence from the passage explains why General Menou handed over the Rosetta Stone to General Hutchinson?

• At last the British gave in and allowed the scholars to keep the bulk of their collections.

• "Without us," they said, "this material is a dead language that neither you nor your scientists can understand."

• Reluctantly, General Menou turned it over to the British general, Hutchinson.

• “You can have it,” he said, “because you are the stronger of us two.”

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The Greek leader, Alexander the Great, had taken control of Egypt in 332 B.C., and after Alexander’s death in 323 B.C. his general, Ptolemy, replaced him. From then until 30 B.C., when Rome conquered Egypt, a long line of pharaohs from the Ptolemy family ruled the country. The Ptolemys kept their Greek culture, including their language, but they also respected the customs and religious beliefs of the native Egyptians.

The details in this excerpt serve as evidence for which fact?

• Some of the Egyptian writings on the Rosetta Stone included hieroglyphs.

• The inscription on the Rosetta Stone was the same in all three languages.

• One of the three inscriptions on the Rosetta Stone was written in Greek.

• French soldiers discovered the Rosetta Stone while tearing down an old fort.

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According to The Riddle of the Rosetta Stone, what detail helped scholars determine that the second Egyptian inscription was a simpler form of Egyptian writing that had been created by “the people”?

• The scholars had seen examples of it before written on rolls of papyrus, a writing material used by the Egyptians.

• Since the scholars had already studied Egyptian languages, they recognized both the hieroglyphs and the demotic version.

• The Greek inscription, which had already been deciphered, explained how to translate each of the Egyptian passages.

• Since only ancient Egyptians understood hieroglyphs, the scholars knew the second inscription had to be a simpler version of the first.

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Which excerpt from The Riddle of the Rosetta Stone describes the effect of the conflict between the British and the French?

• British troops landed near Alexandria.

• A Turkish army marched into Egypt from Syria.

• The Greek leader, Alexander the Great, had taken control of Egypt.

• The French were finally forced to surrender to the British.

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Based on the sequence of events described in The Riddle of the Rosetta Stone, what is the first effect of the Rosetta Stone missing three of its four corners?

• The scholars are unable to read the Greek passage.

• The scholars ask the soldiers to locate the other pieces.

• The soldiers begin searching for the remaining pieces.

• The soldiers immediately hand the slab to their officer.

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According to the sequence of events described in The Riddle of the Rosetta Stone, what leads the scholars to believe that the three inscriptions say the same thing in different languages?

• the discovery of the Rosetta Stone by soldiers

• the letter sent by the army officer to the scholars

• the appearance of the ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs

• the translation of the last sentence of the Greek text

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The French army stayed behind in Egypt—and so did the scholars. In late August, shortly after Napoleon's departure, a large, heavy package arrived at the scholars' palace in Cairo. When they opened it, they found it contained a black stone slab covered with writing in three different scripts.

A note from a French army officer accompanied the package. He told the scholars that the stone had been unearthed in an old fort near the town of Rosetta, thirty-five miles north of Alexandria. French soldiers were tearing down a ruined wall in the fort when they came upon the slab.

Which statement accurately describes a cause-and-effect relationship described in this excerpt?

• Because Napoleon departs for France, the French army and scholars decide to stay in Egypt.

• Because the French army and scholars decide to stay in Egypt, Napoleon decides to depart for France.

• Because the French soldiers are tearing down a ruined wall in a fort, they discover the Rosetta Stone.

• Because the French soldiers are searching for the Rosetta Stone, they tear down a ruined wall in a fort.

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In The Riddle of the Rosetta Stone, James Cross Giblin makes his ideas clear to readers best through his

• confidence and style.

• courage and success.

• tone and viewpoint.

• format and objectives.

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Near the entrance to the long, high-ceilinged room stand two magnificent granite statues of Pharaoh Amenophis III, who ruled Egypt about 1400 B.C. Farther on is a colossal head of Pharaoh Ramesses II dating back to 1250 B.C. And beyond it, resting on a simple base, is a slab of black basalt, a colossal rock.

Which words in the excerpt best show that Giblin thinks the room is important?

• entrance and room

• long and high-ceilinged

• magnificent and colossal

• simple and slab

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