Q 01/05

In myth, which gift won the goddess Athena the patronage of Athens in a contest with a sea god?

A) A fig tree

B) An olive tree

C) A laurel tree

D) A grapevine

Answer · why

B) An olive tree

An olive tree beat the sea god's rival gift, which in the best-known telling was a spring that turned out to be salty and undrinkable.

Q 02/05

Which poison did the philosopher Socrates drink after an Athenian jury sentenced him to death in 399 BC?

A) Hemlock

B) Arsenic

C) Nightshade

D) Wolfsbane

Answer · why

A) Hemlock

Hemlock ended the life of Socrates at about 70, after he turned down his friends' offer to help him escape from prison.

Q 03/05

Which Athenian lawgiver, whose code punished even cabbage theft with death, gave English a word for harshness?

A) Cylon

B) Ephialtes

C) Draco

D) Hipparchus

Answer · why

C) Draco

Draco gave Athens its first written laws around 621 BC, replacing blood feuds with courts, and unforgiving rules have been called draconian ever since...

Q 04/05

On what did Athenians scratch the name of a citizen they wanted banished from Athens for ten years?

A) Wax tablets

B) Lead strips

C) Papyrus scrolls

D) Pottery shards

Answer · why

D) Pottery shards

Pottery shards were the scrap paper of Athens, and their Greek name, ostraka, is why shutting someone out is still called ostracism.

Q 05/05

What method chose most public officials in democratic Athens, including the 500 members of the city council?

A) A random lottery

B) A show of hands

C) A secret ballot

D) A public auction

Answer · why

A) A random lottery

A random lottery struck Athenians as fairer than elections, which favoured the rich, so stone allotment machines called kleroteria drew the names.