Q 01/05

Why is a Venetian gondola never pushed along with a pole like a punt, despite the popular belief?

A) The tides are too strong

B) Poles are banned by law

C) The water is too deep

D) The canal beds are protected

Answer · why

C) The water is too deep

The water is too deep for a pole, so a gondolier sculls with one long oar that also steers the boat.

Q 02/05

A Venetian law against showy display made which colour compulsory for every gondola?

A) Black

B) Dark green

C) Crimson

D) Navy blue

Answer · why

A) Black

Black was imposed to stop nobles outdoing each other with ever showier boats. Ambassadors' gondolas stayed dazzling, hung with bright silk, gold fring...

Q 03/05

To run straight under one oar worked from the right, how is a Venetian gondola's hull shaped?

A) Wider on the right

B) Wider on the left

C) Heavier at the bow

D) Narrower at the stern

Answer · why

B) Wider on the left

Wider on the left by roughly 23 centimetres, the lopsided hull resists the urge to veer off course with every stroke.

Q 04/05

In supermarkets and pharmacies, which piece of equipment do retailers call a gondola?

A) A checkout conveyor belt

B) A wheeled stock cage

C) A refrigerated display case

D) A freestanding shelf unit

Answer · why

D) A freestanding shelf unit

A freestanding shelf unit is a gondola in shop-fitting talk, and rows of them placed end to end form a store's aisles.

Q 05/05

Which James Bond film has Roger Moore flee through Venice in a gondola that turns into a hovercraft?

A) Octopussy

B) Moonraker

C) Live and Let Die

D) For Your Eyes Only

Answer · why

B) Moonraker

Moonraker (1979) gave Bond a propeller-driven gondola that rises on a hovercraft skirt and drives out of the canal across the square.