Lecture About Cave Paintings And Other Types Of Rock Art - IELTS Listening Sample Answer

IELTS Listening section comprises two monologues and two conversations. The topic - A lecture about cave paintings and other types of rock art is IELTS Listening part 4. In this IELTS Listening topic, the lecture is generally about generic topics related to academics. The candidate needs to answer the following IELTS listening question types:

• Note completion
• Sentence completion

Audio Transcript:

You will hear part of a lecture about cave paintings and other types of rock art. First, you have some time to look at questions 31 to 40.

Now listen carefully and answer questions 31 to 40.

Good afternoon, everyone. This is the first seminar in preparation for our archaeological fieldwork in Namibia. We are fantastically lucky to have received partial research funding for this trip from our institute. So I should expect two hundred percent attention and participation from you all. First in a seminar, I'm going to give a brief introduction to contemporary research on rock art and in the second part, I'm going to give you some do’s and don'ts for our field work trip in April. So please listen very carefully. I am first going to focus on the interpretation of rock art in Namibia. We are very fortunate to be going to an area where you can find some of the most important sites in the entire world and I hope to show you how easy it is for everyone to make mistakes in looking at cultures, which are different from our own, the first and most important lesson we have to learn. In Namibia, there are both paintings and things and engravings. That's where the surface of the rock is cut out. Many of the engravings show footprints of animals and most scholars used to think that the purpose of these was simple and obvious. This rock art was like a school book with pictures to teach children about tracks, which track belonged to which animal giraffe, lion and so on. But there were some mysteries. First, when you look at a typical Namibian painting or engraving, you see, the tracks are repeated. There are dozens of tracks for the same animal. What you'd expect just one clear illustration, If the reason, the aim was to teach tracking. Now, there were two more problems. Why are some of the engravings of animals very accurate as should expect or clearly identifiable and others quite unrealistic? And another mystery. Some of these unrealistic animals that It's in the engravings seem to be half-human. Some for example have got human faces. Many researchers now think that these were pictures of the wise men engraved of themselves. They believed they could use magic to control the animals they had drawn. So the hunters could then catch them for food. This shows you some of the dangers of coming from one culture to another, as we will be doing without understanding it fully. Scholars Imagine that children looked at rock art pictures to learn to track. Just because they themselves and learn skills from pictures. Many researchers now believe that rock art had a much more complex purpose and we'll talk more about it next week.

Now, before I invite you to join in a discussion in this second part of the seminar, I'd like to make some very important points about our field work. And in fact, any field trip to look at rock art. We're going to a number of sites and we weren't always. The single largest problem faced by people who manage the sites is yes, I'm sure you've guessed damage caused by visitors even though it's usually unintentional. Whenever you do go to a site, don't forget you can learn many things from observing at a distance, instead of walking all over it. This can really help to reduce visitor pressure. People often say, well, there's only two of us and just this one time, but maybe thousands of people are saying the same thing. And then some basic rules to guide you. We will have our own camp near a village, but remember never to camp on a site, if you go on your own. It may be disrespectful to the people of that culture and certainly don't make fires, however romantic it may seem. It's really dangerous in dry areas and you can easily burn priceless undiscovered material by doing so.

So, how are we going to enjoy the rock art and our field trip? By looking at it, drawing it and photographing it, never by touching it or even tracing it. Rock art is fragile and precious. Remember that climbing on rocks and in caves can destroy in a moment what’s lasted for centuries. So no heroics in Namibia. Please try to be extra careful and help others to be too.

Oh and lastly, please don't even move rocks or branches to take photographs, you should leave the site intact. I'm sure I can rely on you to do that.

Well, that's about all I want to say before today's first discussion. But if you have any questions, please ask them now. Oh and don't forget, you'll find some fascinating information about worldwide sites on the internet. Right, the first question then……...

Section 4

Questions 31-40

17. 31-35

Complete the notes below.

Write ONE WORD ONLY for each answer.

SEMINAR ON ROCK ART

Preparation for fieldwork trip to Namibia in 31 _________

Rock art in Namibia maybe

• Paintings
• Engravings

Earliest explanation of engravings of animal footprints

They were used to help 32_________ learn about tracking.

But:

• Why are the tracks usually 33_________?
• Why are some engravings realistic and other realistic?
• Why are the unrealistic animals sometimes half 34_________

More recent explanation

Wise men may have been trying to control wild animals with 35_________

Question 31:

Answer: April

Explanation: The lecture states that the work trip to Namibia will be conducted in the month of April.

Also check:

Question 32:

Answer: children

Explanation: The earliest explanation of engravings of animal footprints was used to teach children about tracking, and it was like a school book.

Question 33:

Answer: repeated

Explanation: A typical Nambian painting has tracks that are repeated and that are quite mysterious.

Question 34:

Answer: human

Explanation: Some of the unrealistic animals are half-human, for instance, some have got human faces.

Question 35:

Answer: magic

Explanation: It was believed that the half-human faces were drawn by the wise men themselves. They believed that they had magic to control the animals they had drawn.

17. 36-40

Complete the sentences below. Write ONE WORD ONLY for each answer.

36. If you look at a site from a _________ you reduce visitor pressure.
37. To camp on a site may be disrespectful to people from that _________
38. Undiscovered material may be damaged by _________
39. You should avoid _________ or tracing rock art as it is so fragile.
40. In general, your aim is to leave the site _________

Question 36:

Answer: distance

Explanation: When visiting a site, the lecture states that one can learn many things from a distance.

Question 37:

Answer: culture

Explanation: It is advised in the lecture that people should never camp on a site they are visiting as it is disrespectful to the natives.

Question 38:

Answer: fire (s)

Explanation: It is advised that people shouldn’t light fire no matter how romantic it may seem. It is very risky in dry areas and may burn certain priceless undiscovered material.

Question 39:

Answer: touching

Explanation: the lecture says that touching the rocks should never be done. It should be observed by looking, drawing, and photographing it.

Question 40:

Answer: intact

Explanation: The lecture says that moving the rocks is again not allowed, the place should be kept intact.