The Mycenaean Age: dating, key sites and Troy - OCR GCSE Classical Civilisation (The Homeric World) Exam Questions

Practise 35 exam-style questions on The Mycenaean Age: dating, key sites and Troy for OCR GCSE Classical Civilisation (The Homeric World). Write your answer as you would in the exam and get it marked in seconds against the mark scheme, point by point, with an AI tutor on hand if you get stuck.

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Sample questions with model answers

Here are 4 of the questions in this topic, each with a model answer, an explanation of why it earns the marks and the mark scheme an examiner would use.

Question 1

1 mark

Figure 1 is a timeline of the Mycenaean Age.

What happened at about 1200 BC, the date labelled A?

Horizontal timeline titled "The Mycenaean Age", running from 1700 BC on the left to 1000 BC on the right, with the years marked every 100 years (1700 BC to 1000 BC). Events marked by dots on the line, in date order: c. 1600 BC: Shaft graves in Grave Circle A; c. 1250 BC: Lion Gate built at Mycenae; c. 1200 BC: label A; c. 1100 BC: End of the Mycenaean Age. Periods shown as bars below the line, each bar as long as the period: Palace period (c. 1400 BC to c. 1200 BC).

Model answer

About 1200 BC many Mycenaean palaces, such as Pylos, Mycenae and Tiryns, were destroyed or badly damaged, ending the palace period.

Explanation

The timeline's 'Palace period' bar ends at about 1200 BC: palaces such as Pylos were burnt and never rebuilt, while Mycenae and Tiryns were damaged but still lived in until about 1100 BC. The causes are debated (earthquakes, invaders, revolt, famine or the breakdown of trade). The Mycenaean Age itself did not end until about 1100 BC.

Mark scheme

1 mark
Many Mycenaean palaces/citadels were destroyed or damaged (e.g. Mycenae, Tiryns, Pylos)
Accept 'the destruction of the palaces', 'the end of the palace period', 'Pylos was burnt', 'the collapse of the Mycenaean palace system'. Do not accept 'the Trojan War', 'the fall of Troy' or 'the end of the Mycenaean Age' (shown at c. 1100 BC).

Question 2

2 marks

Source A: a description of the palace at Pylos, in Messenia (south-west Greece)

The palace stood on a low hill and had no massive fortification walls like those of Mycenae and Tiryns. Excavations led by Carl Blegen from 1939 uncovered a well-preserved megaron with a large, round painted hearth, storerooms full of drinking cups and oil jars, and an archive room containing hundreds of clay tablets written in Linear B. The palace was destroyed by a great fire about 1200 BC.

Using Source A and your own knowledge, give two reasons why the palace at Pylos is important for our understanding of the Mycenaean Age.

Model answer

The hundreds of Linear B tablets, baked hard in the fire, are records of how the palace ran its kingdom, listing land, workers and goods. The palace is also the best-preserved Mycenaean palace, so its megaron with its great hearth shows us what the heart of a palace looked like.

Explanation

Pylos is often called the Palace of Nestor after the king of 'sandy Pylos' in Homer. Ironically, the fire that destroyed it preserved the clay tablets, which would otherwise have crumbled. Its lack of Cyclopean walls is a useful contrast with Mycenae and Tiryns in questions about defence.

Mark scheme

1 mark
Any one valid reason why Pylos is important.
E.g.: its Linear B tablets (baked hard and preserved by the fire) record how the palace was run - land, workers, goods, taxes, offerings to the gods; its well-preserved plan shows the layout of a Mycenaean palace and megaron (hearth, throne, storerooms); its storerooms show the palace collected, stored and handed out goods; its destruction about 1200 BC is evidence for the collapse of the palaces; it shows that not every palace was heavily fortified; it may be the palace of Homer's Nestor ('sandy Pylos').
1 mark
A second, different valid reason.
As above; must be different.

Question 3

4 marks

Source A: a description of the setting of Mycenae

The citadel stands on a rocky hill at the north-east edge of the fertile Argive plain, between two higher mountains. Steep ravines run along its north and south sides. From the top there is a view across the plain towards the sea of the Argolic Gulf, and the route north through the hills to Corinth and the Isthmus passes close by. A spring rises on the hillside a short distance outside the citadel.

Select two features of the location of Mycenae described in Source A and suggest why each made it a good site for a powerful citadel.

Model answer

First, the citadel had steep ravines along its north and south sides, which gave natural protection, so attackers could only approach easily from one direction and the defenders could concentrate their walls and gates there. Second, the route north to Corinth passed close by, so Mycenae could control trade and travel between the Argive plain and the Isthmus, bringing it wealth and influence over its neighbours.

Explanation

Mycenae's site combined defence (hill, ravines, mountains) with control of land (the plain) and routes (to Corinth), which helps to explain why it became the richest centre of the age. Good answers make the suggestion specific to defence, wealth or control, rather than simply saying the feature was 'useful'.

Mark scheme

2 marks
First feature with suggestion: 1 mark for selecting a relevant feature of the location from Source A, 1 mark for a valid suggestion of why it made Mycenae a good site for a powerful citadel. The suggestion mark may be awarded if it clearly refers to a feature from Source A.
Two pairs from, e.g.: rocky hill (1) - height made the citadel easier to defend and its walls harder to attack (1); steep ravines on two sides (1) - natural protection, so attackers could approach easily from only one direction (1); between two higher mountains (1) - sheltered and protected, guarding the pass (1); view across the plain to the sea (1) - enemies or ships could be seen approaching; the rulers could watch over the land they controlled (1); route to Corinth passes close by (1) - control of trade and travel between the Argive plain and Corinth/the Isthmus brought wealth and power (1); fertile Argive plain (1) - farmland to feed the population and produce wealth (1); spring nearby (1) - a water supply, vital in a siege (later reached by the underground cistern) (1). The second pair must use a different feature.
2 marks
Second, different feature with suggestion: 1 mark for selecting a relevant feature from Source A, 1 mark for a valid suggestion of why it made Mycenae a good site.
As above; must be a different feature from the first pair.

Question 4

8 marks

Source A is a timeline of the end of the Mycenaean Age.

To what extent does the dating evidence support the idea that Mycenaean Greeks attacked and destroyed Troy? Use Source A as a starting point and your own knowledge.

Vertical timeline titled "The end of the Mycenaean Age", running from 1450 BC at the top to 650 BC at the bottom, with the years marked every 100 years (1400 BC to 700 BC). Events marked by dots on the line, in date order: c. 1250 BC: Lion Gate built at Mycenae; c. 1250 BC: Troy VI destroyed; c. 1200 BC: Many Mycenaean palaces destroyed; 1184 BC: Eratosthenes' date for the fall of Troy; c. 1180 BC: Troy VIIa destroyed by fire; c. 1100 BC: End of the Mycenaean Age; c. 725 BC: Homer's Iliad composed. Periods shown as bars to the left of the line, each bar as long as the period: Palace period (c. 1400 BC to c. 1200 BC); Hittite letters about Wilusa (c. 1300 BC to c. 1200 BC); 'Dark Age': writing lost (c. 1100 BC to c. 800 BC).

Model answer

Source A shows that the Mycenaean palace period lasted from about 1400 to 1200 BC, and that the Lion Gate was built at Mycenae about 1250 BC, when the walls of the citadel were extended. Mycenae was therefore at the height of its wealth and power in the mid-13th century, the same period in which the Hittite letters about Wilusa and Ahhiyawa were written. If Ahhiyawa is the land of the Achaeans and Wilusa is Ilios, these letters suggest that Greeks were involved in trouble over Troy at this time, which supports the idea of a Mycenaean attack.

The problem is matching this with the destruction of Troy. Troy VI, the great walled city, ended about 1250 BC, at the right time, but Carl Blegen believed it was destroyed by an earthquake, not by an army. Troy VIIa, by contrast, was destroyed by fire about 1180 BC, with arrowheads and unburied bodies, and this date is remarkably close to Eratosthenes' traditional date of 1184 BC. Yet Source A also shows that many Mycenaean palaces were destroyed about 1200 BC, so by the time VIIa fell the Mycenaean world was collapsing. It is hard to imagine a weakened Mycenae organising a great overseas expedition, and VIIa could have been destroyed by other raiders such as the Sea Peoples.

We must also remember that these dates are approximate, based largely on pottery styles, and could be decades out, while Eratosthenes was calculating many centuries later. The timeline also shows a gap of about 500 years, including a 'Dark Age' without writing, before Homer composed the Iliad, so his story may combine memories of several conflicts.

Overall, the dating evidence supports the idea only partly. It shows that the Mycenaeans were powerful and involved in Anatolia at the time Troy suffered destructions, but no single destruction fits both a Mycenaean attack and the height of Mycenaean power. The dates make a Mycenaean attack possible, not proven.

Explanation

The crucial analysis is the mismatch: Troy VI fell when Mycenae was strong but apparently by earthquake, while Troy VIIa was sacked when the palaces were collapsing. Top answers also question the reliability of the dates themselves and the 500-year gap before Homer.

Mark scheme

8 marks
Levels of response (8 marks). AO1 (4) and AO2 (4) are equally weighted.
Level 4 (7-8 marks): consistently accurate and detailed knowledge of the dates of the Mycenaean palaces, Troy VI and VIIa and the other evidence, using both Source A and own wider knowledge; very good understanding of the context and of the problems of dating; a well-argued response with a clear, substantiated judgement on how far the dates support a Mycenaean attack on Troy, supported by a range of well-selected evidence, including critical analysis.
Level 3 (5-6 marks): accurate knowledge, using both the source and own knowledge; a focused response with relevant analysis of how the dates fit or do not fit, and a judgement.
Level 2 (3-4 marks): sound, mostly accurate knowledge; engages with the general topic of the Trojan War; limited range of evidence; some analysis.
Level 1 (1-2 marks): limited knowledge, may only use Source A; isolated analysis.
0 marks: no response or no response worthy of credit.
A mainly descriptive or narrative answer with little analysis or judgement cannot go above Level 2.
Indicative content (not a checklist; credit other valid points): AO1: palace period about 1400-1200 BC; Lion Gate and extension of Mycenae's walls about 1250 BC (Mycenae at the height of its power); Troy VI destroyed about 1300-1250 BC, by earthquake according to Blegen; many Mycenaean palaces destroyed about 1200 BC (e.g. Pylos burnt); Troy VIIa destroyed by fire about 1180 BC, with arrowheads and unburied remains; Eratosthenes' date for the fall of Troy, 1184 BC; Hittite letters of the 13th century BC about Wilusa and Ahhiyawa; end of the Mycenaean Age about 1100 BC and the 'Dark Age' when writing was lost; Homer composed the Iliad about 750-700 BC; Mycenaean pottery at Troy. AO2: Troy VI's end fits the peak of Mycenaean power but seems to be an earthquake; VIIa's sack fits Eratosthenes' date but the palaces were already collapsing; the Hittite letters show trouble over Wilusa involving Ahhiyawa in the right century; dates from pottery are approximate (decades either way), so the sequence is not certain; Eratosthenes was calculating centuries later; Homer composed some 500 years later after an illiterate 'Dark Age', so the story may blend several events; dates show possibility, not proof of who attacked. Judgement: any supported conclusion.

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