OCR GCSE Classical Civilisation · J199/11

Myth and Religion

50 revision questions with answers for J199/11 Myth and Religion in OCR GCSE Classical Civilisation (spec J199). Practise with flashcards, a topic quiz, a random quiz across the course, 5 crosswords, or read every question and answer below.

All 50 questions and answers

Question 1 · Spec p7
Identify the Greek and Roman rulers of the gods and their marriage goddess, with symbols.
Answer:
Zeus/Jupiter: divine ruler, thunderbolt and eagle. Hera/Juno: marriage and queenship, peacock and sceptre. Their attributes help identify them in art.
Question 2 · Spec p7
Identify the Greek and Roman gods of the sea and underworld.
Answer:
Poseidon/Neptune rules the sea and carries a trident. Hades/Pluto rules the underworld and may appear with Cerberus or a sceptre.
Question 3 · Spec p7
How can Athena/Minerva and Ares/Mars be distinguished?
Answer:
Athena/Minerva combines wisdom, crafts and warfare, often with an owl, helmet and shield. Ares/Mars represents war and appears armed or armoured.
Question 4 · Spec p7
What are the roles and symbols of Demeter/Ceres and Hestia/Vesta?
Answer:
Demeter/Ceres governs agriculture and grain, often carrying ears of corn. Hestia/Vesta represents the hearth and its sacred flame.
Question 5 · Spec p7
What identify Apollo and Artemis/Diana?
Answer:
Apollo, named Apollo in both cultures, is associated with prophecy, music, the lyre and bow. Artemis/Diana governs hunting, with bow and deer.
Question 6 · Spec p7
What identify Aphrodite/Venus and Hephaistos/Vulcan?
Answer:
Aphrodite/Venus represents love and beauty, with symbols such as the dove. Hephaistos/Vulcan governs metalworking and fire, with hammer and anvil.
Question 7 · Spec p7
What identify Hermes/Mercury and Dionysos/Bacchus?
Answer:
Hermes/Mercury is a messenger associated with winged footwear and the caduceus. Dionysos/Bacchus governs wine and appears with grapes, ivy or a wine cup.
Question 8 · Spec p7
How is Heracles/Hercules usually recognised in ancient art?
Answer:
His exceptional strength, club and lion skin identify him. The lion skin recalls his defeat of the Nemean Lion.
Question 9 · Spec p7
Which four Labours involve the lion, hydra, hind and boar?
Answer:
Heracles kills the Nemean Lion and Lernaean Hydra and captures the Ceryneian Hind and Erymanthian Boar.
Question 10 · Spec p7
Which four Labours involve stables, birds, a bull and horses?
Answer:
He cleans the Augean stables, defeats the Stymphalian Birds, captures the Cretan Bull and obtains the man-eating Mares of Diomedes.
Question 11 · Spec p7
Which final four Labours involve Hippolyta, Geryon, the Hesperides and Cerberus?
Answer:
He obtains Hippolyta's girdle, Geryon's cattle and the Hesperides' apples, then brings Cerberus from the underworld.
Question 12 · Spec pp7-8,11
How does the Temple of Zeus at Olympia connect worship and Heracles?
Answer:
Its Doric colonnade surrounds the naos and seated Zeus statue; twelve metopes show Heracles' Labours. The hero was also credited with founding the Olympic games.
Question 13 · Spec p7; Aeneid 8
How does Virgil's Cacus episode present Hercules as a protector?
Answer:
Cacus steals cattle and terrorises the area. Hercules kills him, freeing the community; Evander's celebration connects this rescue with Roman religious tradition.
Question 14 · Spec p7; Ovid 9
How does Hercules defeat Achelous in Ovid's account?
Answer:
Achelous changes form during their contest for Deianira. Hercules overcomes him even as a bull and tears off one of his horns.
Question 15 · Spec p7; Ovid 9
How does Nessus bring about Hercules' death?
Answer:
After Hercules shoots him, Nessus deceives Deianira into keeping his poisoned blood as a love charm. A blood-soaked robe later causes Hercules' agony.
Question 16 · Spec p7; Hymn
How does the Homeric Hymn to Heracles contrast suffering with reward?
Answer:
It recalls the hero's difficult tasks but ends with his divine life and marriage to Hebe, presenting endurance as leading to lasting honour.
Question 17 · Spec p8
Where were sacrifice and the cult statue normally located in a Greek sanctuary?
Answer:
Animal sacrifice usually occurred at an outdoor altar. The cult statue stood inside the naos, the temple's central room.
Question 18 · Spec pp8,11
What features identify the Parthenon and its religious purpose?
Answer:
It stands on Athens' Acropolis and housed Athena's great cult statue. Its surrounding Doric columns and sculptural decoration proclaim her city's wealth and identity.
Question 19 · Spec pp8,11
How does the Temple of Portunus emphasise its entrance?
Answer:
A high podium, steps at the front and an Ionic columned porch direct approach from one main side, unlike a temple approached freely all round.
Question 20 · Spec pp8,11
What features make the Pantheon distinctive?
Answer:
A traditional columned porch leads into a circular interior covered by a vast concrete dome. Its central oculus admits light from above.
Question 21 · Spec p8
What were the roles of the hiereus, hiereia and mantis?
Answer:
The hiereus and hiereia were priests and priestesses serving a deity's cult. The mantis interpreted signs associated with divine knowledge and sacrifice.
Question 22 · Spec p8
Distinguish the Pontifex Maximus, augurs, Vestal Virgins and haruspex.
Answer:
The Pontifex Maximus headed the pontiffs; augurs interpreted auspices; Vestals tended Vesta's sacred fire; a haruspex interpreted sacrificial entrails.
Question 23 · Spec p8
What was the purpose and typical sequence of animal sacrifice?
Answer:
Worshippers sought divine favour or gave thanks. Preparation, prayer, killing and offering selected portions to the gods were followed by distribution or consumption of meat.
Question 24 · Spec p8
How does the naming myth connect Athena with Athens?
Answer:
Athena's olive gift defeats Poseidon's competing claim to the city. The story makes her patronage central to Athens' identity and prosperity.
Question 25 · Spec pp8,11
Which deeds appear on the prescribed Theseus Kylix?
Answer:
The central scene shows the Minotaur. Surrounding scenes show Cercyon, Procrustes, Sciron, the Marathonian Bull, Sinis and the Crommyonian Sow.
Question 26 · Spec p8; Livy 1
How do Aeneas and Ascanius connect Troy with Rome's origins?
Answer:
Aeneas leads Trojan survivors to Italy; Ascanius establishes Alba Longa. Its royal line eventually produces the family of Romulus and Remus.
Question 27 · Spec p8; Livy 1
What divine and extraordinary features mark Romulus and Remus' infancy?
Answer:
Rhea Silvia identifies Mars as their father. Abandoned beside the Tiber, the twins are suckled by a she-wolf before being raised by a shepherd.
Question 28 · Spec p8; Livy 1
What causes the conflict between Romulus and Remus over Rome's foundation?
Answer:
They dispute authority and augural signs. Remus is killed; one version has Romulus kill him after he mocks the new walls.
Question 29 · Spec p8; Plutarch
How should Plutarch's comparison of Theseus and Romulus be used?
Answer:
Compare his moral judgements and chosen examples of leadership, violence and relationships. His biographies evaluate character rather than providing neutral accounts of historical founders.
Question 30 · Spec p8
What were the main features of Athens' City Dionysia?
Answer:
A civic festival honouring Dionysos, including a procession, sacrifices and dramatic competitions. Public participation connected religious worship, theatre and Athenian civic identity.
Question 31 · Spec p8
What distinguished the Great Panathenaia?
Answer:
Held every four years for Athena, it included competitions and a major procession with an offering of a woven robe, alongside sacrifice and celebration.
Question 32 · Spec p8
What happened at the Roman Lupercalia?
Answer:
After sacrifice at the Lupercal, runners used strips of goat hide to strike people encountered during the ritual, traditionally associated with fertility and purification.
Question 33 · Spec p8
How did the Saturnalia alter ordinary Roman social behaviour?
Answer:
The festival honoured Saturn through celebration, gifts and feasting. Relaxed conventions and temporary role reversals involving slaves contrasted with everyday social hierarchy.
Question 34 · Spec pp8,11
How could the Parthenon's Centauromachy express civic power?
Answer:
The Lapiths' struggle against violent centaurs can suggest the defence of order against disorder, allowing myth to communicate ideals associated with Greek civilisation.
Question 35 · Spec pp8,11
How does the Bassae frieze present the Amazonomachy?
Answer:
Greeks and armed Amazons fight in vigorous, closely entangled groups. Their struggle can express Greek victory while also giving the opponents visible courage and strength.
Question 36 · Spec pp8,11
How does the Augustus of Prima Porta connect rule with divine power?
Answer:
The idealised emperor appears as a military leader; divine imagery on the cuirass and Cupid beside him connect political success with cosmic and ancestral approval.
Question 37 · Spec pp8,11
How does the Ara Pacis link myth with Augustus' rule?
Answer:
Mythic ancestry, ritual procession and images of abundance associate the Augustan regime with piety, continuity and peace. Some mythological figures have disputed identifications.
Question 38 · Spec p9
What was prothesis in Greek funerary practice?
Answer:
The prepared body was laid out for viewing and mourning, normally at home. Female relatives played an important role in preparation and lament.
Question 39 · Spec p9
What were ekphora and stelai?
Answer:
Ekphora was the procession carrying the dead to burial. Stelai were upright grave markers that could record identity and commemorate family relationships.
Question 40 · Spec p9
What was the Greek Genesia?
Answer:
A festival associated with honouring the dead and ancestors through visits and offerings, maintaining ties between the living family and previous generations.
Question 41 · Spec p9
Why did some Romans join funeral clubs?
Answer:
Members contributed towards burial expenses and commemoration, helping people of limited means obtain funerary arrangements and a continuing place in communal remembrance.
Question 42 · Spec p9
How could a Roman funeral procession communicate family status?
Answer:
Prominent families could display mourners, bearers and ancestral images, making the dead person's social position and family achievements publicly visible.
Question 43 · Spec p9
How were Roman bodies disposed of and commemorated?
Answer:
Both cremation and inhumation were practised, with changing preferences over time. Tombs and inscriptions preserved memory, often beside roads outside the inhabited city.
Question 44 · Spec p9
How did the Parentalia and Lemuria differ?
Answer:
Parentalia honoured family ancestors with visits and offerings. Lemuria involved rites intended to remove or appease troubling spirits associated with the household.
Question 45 · Spec p9; Hymn
Why does Demeter's grief create a crisis in the Hymn to Demeter?
Answer:
After Hades takes Persephone, Demeter withholds agricultural fertility. Human starvation also threatens the sacrifices and honours that sustain relations with the gods.
Question 46 · Spec p9; Hymn
What role does Zeus play in Persephone's abduction and return?
Answer:
He authorises the marriage to Hades, then intervenes when Demeter's resistance threatens humanity, sending Hermes to bring Persephone back.
Question 47 · Spec p9; Hymn
How is Persephone's time divided in the prescribed Homeric Hymn?
Answer:
Because she has eaten the pomegranate seed, she spends one-third of each year below and two-thirds with her mother and the other gods.
Question 48 · Spec p9; Hymn
How does the Hymn to Demeter connect myth with religious practice?
Answer:
Demeter restores fertility and teaches her rites at Eleusis, linking the story of separation and reunion with the origins and authority of her cult.
Question 49 · Spec p9; Ovid 10
How does Orpheus win permission to recover Eurydice?
Answer:
His song moves the rulers of the underworld. They allow her to follow him out, provided he does not look back before reaching the upper world.
Question 50 · Spec p9; Ovid 10
Why does Orpheus lose Eurydice again in Ovid's account?
Answer:
Fear and longing lead him to look back before the permitted moment. The broken condition makes her return to the underworld, turning love into renewed loss.

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