From the thirteenth to the sixteenth century, the Inca empire flourished in the Andes Mountains. It maintained an eleven-thousand-mile network of stone-paved roads.
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1) Which of the following, if true, provides the strongest support for an archaeologist’s conclusion that a particular stretch of ancient stone-paved road was part of the Inca road system?
A) When the Inca conquered the area, they took some of the existing roads into their road system and then greatly extended the road system.
B) The particular stretch of road is oriented north and south, the orientation that many of the major roads in the Inca system had because of the north-south orientation of the Andes chain.
C) Shards of eleventh-century pottery from a distant part of what later became the Inca empire were found next to the stretch of road.
D) The stretch of road is the only ancient road between two places that were listed consecutively in a sixteenth-century list of way stations on the Inca road system.
You're looking for the statement that "strongest support for an archaeologist’s conclusion that a particular stretch of ancient stone-paved road was part of the Inca road system".
A) doesn't offer any support.
B) is a possibility.
C) Shards of pottery from the 11th century isn't very conclusive for a roadway that wasn't started for another 2 centuries.
D) Since the conclusion is supported by outside evidence makes this the best support.
To determine which answer choice provides the strongest support for the archaeologist's conclusion that a particular stretch of ancient stone-paved road was part of the Inca road system, we need to carefully consider each option:
A) When the Inca conquered the area, they took some of the existing roads into their road system and then greatly extended the road system.
This option suggests that the Inca empire incorporated existing roads into their road system when they conquered the area. While this information is relevant, it does not directly confirm that the specific stretch of road in question is part of the Inca road system.
B) The particular stretch of road is oriented north and south, the orientation that many of the major roads in the Inca system had because of the north-south orientation of the Andes chain.
This option provides stronger support for the archaeologist's conclusion. It indicates that the north-south orientation of the particular stretch of road aligns with the orientation of many major roads in the Inca road system, which were influenced by the north-south orientation of the Andes mountains. This similarity suggests a connection to the Inca road network.
C) Shards of eleventh-century pottery from a distant part of what later became the Inca empire were found next to the stretch of road.
While the discovery of ancient pottery is interesting, it does not directly support the conclusion that the specific stretch of road is part of the Inca road system. The pottery shards could be from a different time period or culture.
D) The stretch of road is the only ancient road between two places that were listed consecutively in a sixteenth-century list of way stations on the Inca road system.
This option provides strong support for the archaeologist's conclusion. If the stretch of road is the only ancient road between two places listed consecutively on a sixteenth-century list of way stations on the Inca road system, it suggests a direct connection to the Inca road network.
Considering all the options, option D provides the strongest support for the archaeologist's conclusion. The identification of the stretch of road as the only ancient road between two consecutive places on the sixteenth-century list of Inca road way stations is a strong indication that it was part of the Inca road system.