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  3. Commemorative plaques cast from brass are a characteristic art form of the Benin

Commemorative plaques cast from brass are a characteristic art form of the Benin

游客2024-01-12  17
问题 Commemorative plaques cast from brass are a characteristic art form of the Benin culture of West Africa. Some scholars, noting that the oldest surviving plaques date to the 1400s, hypothesize that brass-casting techniques were introduced by the Portuguese, who came to Benin in 1485 A.D. But Portuguese records of that expedition mention cast-brass jewelry sent to Benin’s king from neighboring Ife. So it is unlikely that Benin’s knowledge of brass casting derived from the Portuguese.
Which of the following, if true, most strengthens the argument?
选项 A、The Portuguese records do not indicate whether their expedition of 1485 included metalworkers.
B、The Portuguese had no contact with Ife until the 1500s.
C、In the 1400s the Portuguese did not use cast brass for commemorative plaques.
D、As early as 1500 A.D., Benin artists were making brass plaques incorporating depictions of Europeans.
E、Copper, which is required for making brass, can be found throughout Benin territory.
答案 B
解析 Argument Construction
Situation The oldest surviving cast-brass plaques from the Benin culture date to the 1400s. Records of a Portuguese expedition to Benin in 1485 mention cast-brass jewelry sent to Benin’s king from neighboring Ife.
Reasoning What additional evidence, when combined with the argument’s premises, would most help support the conclusion that Benin’s knowledge of brass casting did not derive from the Portuguese? The argument is that since the expedition records indicate that cast-brass jewelry from Ife was already known in Benin when the Portuguese first came there, Benin’s knowledge of brass casting probably did not derive from the Portuguese. This argument assumes that receiving the brass-cast jewelry from Ife could have transmitted knowledge of brass casting to Benin, and also that knowledge of brass casting in Ife did not itself derive from the Portuguese. Any evidence supporting either of these assumptions would strengthen the argument.
A This is compatible with a Portuguese origin for brass-casting in Benin. The expedition might well have included metalworkers even if the records do not mention whether it did. Furthermore, other Portuguese expeditions with metalworkers might have quickly followed the initial expedition.
B Correct. If the Portuguese had no contact with Ife before 1500, then Ife’s earlier knowledge of brass casting did not derive directly from the Portuguese. This increases the likelihood that knowledge of brass casting in Benin did not derive from the Portuguese, even if it derived from Ife.
C This is compatible with a Portuguese origin for brass-casting in Benin. Even if the Portuguese did not use cast brass for commemorative plaques, they could have used it for jewelry or other items they brought to Benin or manufactured there, and thus they could have transmitted the knowledge to the Benin culture.
D This leaves open the possibility that the Benin culture learned about brass casting from the Portuguese in 1485 and started using it to produce plaques of this type by 1500.
E Even if copper has always been common in the Benin territory, brass-casting techniques could have been introduced by the Portuguese.
The correct answer is B.
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