August Quiz

A monthly quiz of general history, traditions, geography questions for August
1. Which is NOT true of the Great Wall of China?
Shanhaiguan is at the eastern end
300,000 slaves were used to build it
It can be seen from the moon
Gansu, Great Wall

2. The eastern section of the Great Wall was extensively rebuilt in which dynasty?
Song
Qing
Ming
Great Wall, Beijing
Great Wall near Simatai, Beijing

3. Journey to the West is a book describing the introduction of which religion to China?
Confucianism
Christianity
Buddhism
Buddhism , Dali, Yunnan, temple
Chongsheng Temple, Dali, Yunnan

4. Mencius or Mengzi is a famous philosopher of which tradition
Buddhism
Confucianism
Mohism
Qufu, Shandong, sculpture
Monument at Qufu, Shandong

5. Loess is often seen in northern China, what is it?
tall pagodas
type of insect
fine calcareous sand
pingyao, street, shanxi

7. Which country is NOT considered an Asian Tiger
Hong Kong
Vietnam
Taiwan
Hong Kong, harbor, skyscraper, modern housing
Night skyline of Victoria harbor, Hong Kong

8. Lacquer is a protective coating often applied to works of art, from where is it obtained?
bird's nests
persimmon fruits
tree sap
lacquer, song dynasty
A Chinese red lacquer tray over wood with engraved golden foil, from the Song Dynasty (960-1279 AD), dated 12th to early 13th century. As the Freer and Sackler Galleries museum description states, in China the gold-engraving technique is called qiangjin. The museum caption states that this method has existed since roughly the 3rd century AD, although it was not until the Song Dynasty era that gold engravings were found on luxury lacquerwares. After a wooden tray was covered with multiple layers of cinnabar-colored lacquer, fine lines were then incised into the new surface. These incisions were then filled with an adhesive of clear lacquer, followed by the pressing of gold foil into the grooves. The two long-tailed birds and a peony plant depicted in this tray are symbolic of longevity and prosperity in Chinese culture, since the Chinese word for "long life" (shou) sounds similar to the words for long-tailed birds (dai shou). Image by PericlesofAthens available under a Creative Commons License

9. Zhuangzi described a thinker musing whether he was in fact what kind of creature dreaming itself a human?
ox
dragon
butterfly
painting, daoism, sage, landscape
Walking on Path in Spring by Ma Yuan c.1190 - 1279, a Chinese painter of the Song Dynasty. Image by National Palace Museum available under a Creative Commons License .

10. Acupuncture points control the flow of what?
oxygen
pain
qi - life energy
TCM, calligraphy
A range of traditional medicines with calligraphy extolling the virtues of TCM

11. In Singapore, ethnic Chinese make up what proportion of the population?
20%
75%
90%
dragon dance,  dance
© CEphoto, Uwe Aranas. Image by CEPhoto available under a Creative Commons License

12. The world famous Shaolin monastery for martial arts is located in which province?
Henan
Hebei
Hunan
Henan, Shaolin , martial arts
Shaolin martial arts display Copyright © Dreamstime see image license

13. Who married the Republican leader Sun Yatsen in 1915
Song Qingling
Song Meiling
Song Ailing
Guangdong, Sun Yatsen
Sun Yatsen Memorial Hall with bronze statue

14. Wang Mang led a successful revolt during which dynasty?
Tang
Han
Ming
Wang Mang, Han dynasty
莽像 Emperor Wang Mang. Image available under a Creative Commons license .

15. How old was Puyi when he became the last Emperor?
3
7
9
Emperor Puyi
Portrait of Puyi (Xuantong Emperor) (1906-1967) Image available under a Creative Commons license .
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