THE DEPARTMENT OF ETHNOGRAPHY READING Answers with Explanation
- Question The twentieth-century collections come mainly from mainstream societies such as the US and Europe.
The answer here is false as the collection was from Asia as well, look at this paragraph (The collections of the Department of Ethnography include approximately 300,000 artefacts, of which about half are the product of the present century. The Department has a vital role to play in providing information on non-Western cultures to visitors and scholars. (here non-western means Asia and Africa which has also been mentioned in above paragraph).
- Question The Department of Ethnography focuses mainly on modern societies
The answers here is again false it cannot Be NOT GIVEN, we must give emphasis to word (focuses) which makes the question here. Not on modern societies.
LOOK at this text just read bold words.
“The Department of Ethnography was created as a separate department within the British Museum in 1946, offer 140 years of gradual development from the original Department of Antiquities. If is concerned with the people of Africa, the Americas, Asia, the Pacific and parts of Europe. While this includes complex kingdoms, as in Africa, and ancient empires, such as those of the Americas, the primary focus of attention in the twentieth century has been on small-scale societies
3. Question– The Department concentrates on collecting single unrelated objects of great value.
The answer is clearly False here just read the bold letter from the paragraph.
The collections of the Department of Ethnography include approximately 300,000 artefacts, of which about half are the product of the present century. The Department has o vital role to play in providing information on non-Western cultures to visitors and scholars. To this end, the collecting emphasis has often been less on individual objects than on groups of material which allow the display of a broad range of o society’s cultural expressions.
(group of material means not individual)
4. Question The textile collection of the Department of Ethnography is the largest in the world.
The answers is not given as there is no such information on the given text.
5. Question Traditional societies are highly inventive in terms of technology.
The answer to this question is TRUE as it is explained in this text –
“On the one hand modern imported goods may be used in an everyday setting, while on the other hand other traditional objects may still be required for ritually significant events. Within this context trade and exchange attitudes are inverted. What are utilitarian objects to a Westerner may be prized objects in other cultures – when transformed by local ingenuity – principally for aesthetic value. In some way, the West imports goods from other peoples and in certain circumstances categorises them as ‘art’.”
Ingenuity means- talent or claver talent
6. Question . Many small-scale societies have survived and adapted in spite of predictions to the contrary. (here bold words means opposite of what was said initially said)
Answer to this question is TRUE please see bold letter for description.
With the Independence of much of Asia and Africa after 1945, it was assumed that economic progress would rapidly lead to the disappearance or assimilation of many small-scale societies( this means people thought societies will disappear). Therefore, it was felt that the Museum should acquire materials representing people whose art or material culture, ritual or political structures were on the point of irrevocable change. This attitude altered with the realisation that marginal communities can survive( this means letter on the attitude changed).
7 Question . Bolivian textiles Answer —are Technical series
look at the paragraph ” The material collected includes great technical series – for instance, of textiles from Bolivia, “
8 Question . Indian coracles Answers —- Artefact type.
look at the paragraph for answers ” The material collected includes great technical series – for instance, of textiles from Bolivia, Guatemala, Indonesia and areas of West Africa – or of artefact types such as boats. The latter include working examples of coracles from India .
9 Question. airport art Answer———– field assemblages
look at the paragraph for answers bold words
“The field assemblages, such as those from the Sudan, Madagascar and Yemen, include a whole range of material culture representative of one people. This might cover the necessities of life of an African herdsman or on Arabian farmer—-( answers number 11), ritual objects, or even on occasion airport art—- answer number 9. Again, a series of acquisitions might”.
10 Question. Arctic kayaks Answers–——–artefact types
The material collected includes great technical series – for instance, of textiles from Bolivia, Guatemala, Indonesia and areas of West Africa – or of artefact types such as boats. The latter include working examples of coracles from India, reed boars from Lake Titicaca in the Andes, kayaks from the Arctic, and dug-out canoes from several countries.
11. Answer is given above in question 9 paragraph.
12. Question. Tents from the middle east Answers is social experience
look at the paragraph bold letter.
Again, a series of acquisitions might represent a decade’s fieldwork documenting social experience as expressed in the varieties of clothing and jewellery styles, tents and camel trappings from various Middle Eastern countries.