Complete the table below.
Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the passage for each answer.
Cartography, from the Greek word khartes meaning 'map' and graphein meaning 'write', , is a science that is at its simplest level the study and practice of making maps. At a more sophisticated level, it is not just a science, but an art that seeks to give in a simple and beautiful form, to the spatial information in the human environment. Cartography, along with science and aesthetics, obviously involves technical expertise, which has been developing over millennia.
Historically, maps have sought to utilise the complex knowledge of the environment, innate in the majority of the human race, to suit the needs of people who seek to use them. Communities living in small groups and not travelling very far have little need of complex maps, while urban dwellers, seafarers or traders operating in a much more complex and/or wider environment need something more sophisticated, either to delineate boundaries and define ownership, or to travel routes beyond the immediate confines of their communities. As humanity's needs have changed and the world they encountered has changed, so have the maps they need to shape or navigate that world.
What exactly constitutes a map has made the identification of the first maps not easy. Early dot maps of the night sky from the 17,000 BC have been found in caves at Lascaux in France, but even earlier representations of mountains and routes dated to 25,000 BC have been identified in the Czech Republic. At present-day Catalhuyuk in Anatolia, an aerial map like plan of the town has been dated to about 7,000 years BC, while at Valcamonica in the Italian Alps, examples of images date to the 4th millennium BC.
The primary function of the creation of maps is to locate the place of humanity in their world and to guide. Drawings of totemic ancestors, such as crocodiles or birds, and their actions, have been made on bark and cave walls by Australian Aboriginals, as well as through songs and rituals, to act as maps to help guide souls through the world in Dream Time. In the Marshall Islands in the Pacific Ocean are found stick charts, which give an idea of what maps in ancient times might have looked like. The charts are memory aids showing the swells of the ocean that were studied and learnt prior to a sea voyage. They recorded different features from today's maps, but nonetheless their contribution to cartography is not insignificant.
In Mesopotamia, in modern day Iraq, ancient clay tablets dating back as far as the 3rd Century BC have been found depicting estates and, at times, cities such as Nippur, south of Babylon, with marking for irrigation channels, a river and estate boundaries. These tablets are title deeds for an urbanising world. A clay tablet dated about 600 BC has a world map with Babylon and the Euphrates near its centre. The Nazca lines in Peru in South America have also been variously associated with irrigation and celestial maps. By contrast, there are few maps from Ancient Egypt with those that are relating to the maintenance of the boundaries of properties after the annual Nile floods. However, the Turin papyrus map dating from about the 12th Century BC was used for those on quarrying expeditions and contains topographical features such as mountains, wells and road networks.
At a much later date, in The Middle Ages, remarkably accurate sea charts, called portolans, were used with the magnetic compass, which was not invented in Europe until the latter part of the12th century. These sea charts were all created in the same way from vellum from goats or sheep skin. Further, they were rectangular in shape with the neck skin of the animal still attached. They also all had line drawings in coloured ink. The charts basically consisted of a network of line drawings, with the cartographer drawing a hidden circle around a central point and then vertical and horizontal lines through the centre. A series of other circles were drawn with similar lines. Depending on the direction, these lines were then drawn in different colours. Another characteristic of the maps was the enlarged headlands because they were important for seafarers. Names going clockwise around the Mediterranean Sea were written perpendicular to the coastline to avoid obscuring the coastline.
With three-dimensional and digital maps, modern-day cartographers have very sophisticated digital tools at their disposal to make sense, shape and refine our place in the world and to guide us. As in the past, cartography as a science is still having a huge impact on human progress.
Maps among different peoples
| People | Artefacts | Purpose | Other notes |
| Australian Aboriginals | and drawings of animals | to guide souls in | contained representations of totemic ancesters |
| Marshall Islanders | stick chart | memory for navigators at sea | huge contribution to cartography map |
| Mesopotamians | for a more urban society | containing details of ownership of land/mainly from 1st millenium BC | |
| Ancient Egyptians | Turin papyrus | used on to quarry stones | contains |
AI explanationShows the answer. Tap to open.
Question Focus: Finding the material used for Aboriginal drawings
Correct Answer: bark
Why this is correct: The table says Australian Aboriginals made drawings of animals. The passage clearly states that these drawings were made on bark and cave walls. Because the gap comes before 'and cave drawings', the correct word here is bark.
Passage Reference: Drawings of totemic ancestors, such as crocodiles or birds, and their actions, have been made on bark and cave walls
Common Mistake: Students sometimes write wood or tree, which are related ideas but not the exact word used. You must copy the exact passage word. This is a synonym trap.
Paraphrasing: Passage: 'on bark and cave walls' = Table: '[GAP] and cave drawings'
Tips: When two items are joined by 'and', check the passage for the exact paired words.
Key Vocabulary:
- bark = tree covering
Question Focus: Identifying the second location of Aboriginal drawings
Correct Answer: cave
Passage Reference: Drawings of totemic ancestors, such as crocodiles or birds, and their actions, have been made on bark and cave walls
Why this is correct: The passage explains that Aboriginal drawings were made on bark and cave walls. The table already includes the word 'drawings', so the missing word is cave.
Common Mistake: Some students write walls, but the table already says 'drawings', not 'walls'. Adding 'walls' would be grammatically wrong. This is a grammar fit trap.
Paraphrasing: Passage: 'cave walls' = Table: 'cave drawings'
Tips: Adjust the passage words so they fit the grammar of the table, but do not change the core word.
Key Vocabulary:
- cave = natural underground space
Question Focus: Identifying the spiritual concept guiding souls
Correct Answer: dream time
Passage Reference: to act as maps to help guide souls through the world in Dream Time.
Why this is correct: The table says the purpose was to guide souls in something. The passage explicitly says these maps guide souls through the world in Dream Time. Copying these exact words gives the correct answer.
Common Mistake: Students sometimes write spirit world or afterlife, which changes the meaning. This is a synonym trap.
Paraphrasing: Passage: 'guide souls through the world in Dream Time' = Table: 'to guide souls in [GAP]'
Tips: Capital letters are not important in IELTS, but spelling and word order are.
Key Vocabulary:
- Dream Time = Aboriginal spiritual world
Question Focus: Understanding the function of Marshall Island stick charts
Correct Answer: aids
Passage Reference: The charts are memory aids showing the swells of the ocean that were studied and learnt prior to a sea voyage.
Why this is correct: The table says 'memory ___ for navigators at sea'. The passage directly states that the charts are memory aids, so the missing word is aids.
Common Mistake: Some students write tools or maps, which are logical but not the exact word used. This is a synonym trap.
Paraphrasing: Passage: 'memory aids' = Table: 'memory aids for navigators at sea'
Tips: If part of a phrase is already given, copy only the missing word from the passage.
Key Vocabulary:
- aid = help
Question Focus: Identifying Mesopotamian map artefacts
Correct Answer: clay tablets
Passage Reference: In Mesopotamia, in modern day Iraq, ancient clay tablets dating back as far as the 3rd Century BC have been found depicting estates and, at times, cities such as Nippur, south of Babylon, with marking for irrigation channels, a river and estate boundaries.
Why this is correct: The passage explains that Mesopotamian maps were found on ancient clay tablets. The table asks for the artefacts, so clay tablets is the correct answer.
Common Mistake: Students sometimes write tablets only, but that misses an important detail. This is a partial truth trap.
Paraphrasing: Passage: 'ancient clay tablets' = Table: 'Artefacts: [GAP]'
Tips: When a noun has a clear adjective in the passage, include both if they fit the word limit.
Key Vocabulary:
- tablet = flat piece for writing
Question Focus: Purpose of Mesopotamian maps
Correct Answer: title deeds
Passage Reference: These tablets are title deeds for an urbanising world.
Why this is correct: The table says the purpose was something 'for a more urban society'. The passage clearly states that these tablets are title deeds for an urbanising world, which matches perfectly.
Common Mistake: Some students write ownership records, which explains the idea but is not the exact phrase. This is a synonym trap.
Paraphrasing: Passage: 'title deeds for an urbanising world' = Table: '[GAP] for a more urban society'
Tips: Look for sentences that explain purpose using 'is' or 'are'. They often give direct answers.
Key Vocabulary:
- title deeds = legal ownership papers
Question Focus: Use of the Turin papyrus map
Correct Answer: expeditions
Passage Reference: However, the Turin papyrus map dating from about the 12th Century BC was used for those on quarrying expeditions and contains topographical features such as mountains, wells and road networks.
Why this is correct: The table says the map was used on something 'to quarry stones'. The passage states it was used for those on quarrying expeditions, so the missing word is expeditions.
Common Mistake: Students may write journeys or trips, which are incorrect because the passage uses a specific term. This is a synonym trap.
Paraphrasing: Passage: 'used for those on quarrying expeditions' = Table: 'used on [GAP] to quarry stones'
Tips: When the passage uses a specific technical word, always copy it exactly.
Key Vocabulary:
- expedition = organised journey
General Tips:
- Summary and table completion questions follow passage order, so answer gaps from top to bottom.
- Always copy the exact word or words from the passage. Do not use your own synonyms.
- Check the grammar around the gap to see if you need a noun, verb, or adjective.
- Count your words carefully. Exceeding the word limit makes the answer wrong.
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