Q 01/05

Which culture is considered Mesoamerica's first dominant one, peaking around 1200 BCE?

A) The Olmecs

B) The Maya

C) The Aztecs

D) The Zapotecs

Answer · why

A) The Olmecs

They pioneered hieroglyphic writing, the calendar, monumental sculpture and jade work.

Q 02/05

The giant Olmec heads were carved from what kind of stone?

A) Limestone

B) Basalt

C) Jade

D) Obsidian

Answer · why

B) Basalt

The boulders came from the Sierra de Los Tuxtlas in Veracruz, more than 150 km from where they were placed.

Q 03/05

How many confirmed Olmec colossal heads are known?

A) 47

B) 37

C) 27

D) 17

Answer · why

D) 17

They come from four sites in the Olmec heartland on the Gulf Coast and are thought to portray individual rulers.

Q 04/05

Where is the oldest rock art in the Americas, about 7,500 years old, believed to be?

A) A canyon in Chihuahua

B) A cliff in Oaxaca

C) A cave in Baja California

D) A cenote in Yucatán

Answer · why

C) A cave in Baja California

It predates the Olmecs by several thousand years.

Q 05/05

Into which three eras is the Mesoamerican period usually divided?

A) Early, Middle, Late

B) Archaic, Golden, Late

C) Formative, Imperial, Decline

D) Pre-Classic, Classic, Post-Classic

Answer · why

D) Pre-Classic, Classic, Post-Classic

Together they span roughly 1500 BCE to 1500 CE.