Page 50 - index
P. 50
2020 מועד סתיו - 49 - פרק שני- אנגלית
Text II (Questions 18-22)
(1) On the southern edge of the Zimbabwe plateau, between the Zambezi and the
Limpopo rivers, lies the largest and most impressive archaeological site in sub-Saharan
Africa. With its high, conical tower, its long, curved stone walls and its diverse
artifacts, Great Zimbabwe attests to the existence of a thriving city that flourished
(5) between the 12th and 17th centuries, dominating trade and culture throughout southern
Africa. The Republic of Zimbabwe (formerly known as Rhodesia, a country ruled by a
white minority) was named for this site. Great Zimbabwe, with its unique architecture
and sculpture, is a rich source of information about African history. Yet not until the
late 20th century did most Western archaeologists study and interpret it in this light.
(10) The beauty and complexity of Great Zimbabwe's stonework led the 19th-century
European archaeologists who studied the site to conclude that it could not have been
constructed by local people. In the view of these archaeologists – a view shared by
many other Europeans – Africans were too primitive and their culture too
unsophisticated for them to be capable of constructing such a city. James Theodore
(15) Bent of Britain, who visited Great Zimbabwe in 1891, concluded that it must have been
built by Phoenician or Arabian traders who settled in the area. A report written in 1898
by W. G. Neal of England's Ancient Ruins Company reiterated Bent's conclusions.
Anyone who suggested otherwise was not well received. In 1905, David Randall-
MacIver, a British Egyptologist, excavated at the site and uncovered artifacts very
(20) similar to the ones being used by the Shona people living in the vicinity. This
continuity of artifacts suggested to Randall-MacIver that the city had been built by
native Africans. However, Randall-MacIver's findings were ridiculed and ultimately
disregarded by Rhodesia's white rulers. As late as the 1970s, European archaeologists
who were vocal about the native origin of Great Zimbabwe were imprisoned and
(25) eventually deported. Africans who expressed the same view lost their jobs. Only after
the creation of Zimbabwe in 1980 did Randall-MacIver's interpretation gain acceptance.
Today, Great Zimbabwe serves as a symbol of the richness and complexity of African
culture and history.
Questions
18. The main purpose of the text is to -
(1) describe the location, artifacts and architecture of the city known as Great
Zimbabwe
(2) explain why Great Zimbabwe is now considered one of the world's most important
archaeological sites
(3) show how the methods and ideas of Western archaeologists have changed since the
19th century
(4) discuss an archaeological site in Africa and different interpretations of its history
)© כל הזכויות שמורות למרכז ארצי לבחינות ולהערכה (ע"ר
. בלא אישור בכתב מהמרכז הארצי לבחינות ולהערכה- כולה או חלקים ממנה- או ללמדה,אין להעתיק או להפיץ בחינה זו או קטעים ממנה בכל צורה ובכל אמצעי
