1. Fill in the blanks:
(a) The Rajarajeshvara temple was built in ___________ .
(b) Ajmer is associated with the Sufi saint ___________ .
(c) Hampi was the capital of the __________ Empire.
(d) The Dutch established a settlement at ___________ in Andhra Pradesh.
Answer
(a) The Rajarajeshvara temple was built in Thanjavur.
(b) Ajmer is associated with the Sufi saint Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti.
(c) Hampi was the capital of the Vijayanagara Empire.
(d) The Dutch established a settlement at Masulipatnam in Andhra Pradesh.
2. State whether true or false:
(a) We know the name of the architect of the Rajarajeshvara temple from an
inscription.
(b) Merchants preferred to travel individually rather than in caravans.
(c) Kabul was a major centre for trade in elephants.
(d) Surat was an important trading port on the Bay of Bengal.
Answer
(a) True
(b) False
(c) False
(d) False
3. How was water supplied to the city of Thanjavur?
Answer
Water was supplied to the city of Thanjavur from wells and tanks.
4. Who lived in the "Black Towns" in cities such as Madras?
Answer
Merchants, artisans such as weavers, traders and craftspersons lived in the
"Black Towns" in cities such as Madras.
5. Why do you think towns grew around temples?
Answer
Towns grew around temples because:
(i) They were administrative centres.
(ii) They were also centres of commercial activities and craft production.
(iii) Temples wealth were used to finance banking and trades by the temple
authorities.
(iv) In order to cater the needs of pilgrims, a large number of priests,
artisans, workers and traders
settled near the temple and slowly pilgrimage centres developed into townships.
6. How important were craftspersons for the building and maintenance of
temples?
Answer
Craftspersons were very important for the building and maintenance of temples.
(i) These community consist of goldsmiths, bronzesmiths, blacksmiths, masons and
carpenters which
were essential to the building of temples.
(ii) They were also helpful in the artwork in copper and silver like making
idols, designing the walls and the roofs.
(iii) The prosperous community of weavers also made donations to temples.
7. Why did people from distant lands visit Surat?
Answer
People from distant lands visit Surat because:
(i) It was the emporium of western trade.
(ii) It was the gateway for trade and also been called the gate to Mecca because
many pilgrim ships set sail from here.
(iii) Portuguese, Dutch and English had their factories and warehouses at Surat.
(iii) Textiles of Surat were famous for their gold lace borders (zari).
(v) There were magnificent buildings and innumerable pleasure parks for the
comfort of the people..
8. In what ways was craft production in cities like Calcutta different from
that in cities like Thanjavur?
Answer
Craft production in cities like Calcutta different from that in cities like
Thanjavur:
(i) Craftspersons in Thanjavur were independent while in Calcutta they were in
the hands of Europeans.
(ii)In Thanjavur, crafts were developed on interest and they were creative and
specialized while in
Calcutta craftspersons began to work on a system of advances.
(iii) They were having liberty to sell their own made crafts and textiles while
here they no longer had the liberty of selling their own crafts.
(iv) In Calcutta they had to reproduce the designs supplied to them by the
Company agents.
(v) They now had to moved into the Black Towns established by the European
companies within these new cities.