Question

questions 10 through 12 refer to the following.

• on several occasions, ghazan khan went to the observatory at maragha ** and watched

the muslim, christian, and chinese astronomers make their observations. he looked at
all the operations and instruments, studied them, and asked about their procedures,
which he understood in spite of their difficulty. he also ordered the construction of a
dome in order to investigate the suns motion and he spoke out with his astronomers
about it. all of them said that although they had never seen such an instrument, it was
reasonable and sensible.
he gave orders for the construction of an observatory next to his tomb in tabriz in
persia. he explained how to construct the observatory with such clarity that local wise
men marveled at his intelligence, because such work had not been done in any era.
those wise men said that constructing the observatory would be extremely difficult. he
guided them, whereupon they commenced building it and they finished it following his
instructions. those wise men and all the engineers agreed that nobody had done such a
thing before nor had imagined doing it.

• ruler of the mongol ilkhanate, whose territories included most of the muslim middle

east, reigned 1295-1304
rashid al-din hamdani, persian muslim historian and government minister in ghazan
khans court, excerpt from a universal history commissioned by ghazan khan, completed
first ilkhand ruler in the mid-thirteenth century

• an astronomical observatory in present-day azerbaijan, established by a grant from the

10 mark for review
which of the following best describes the authors purpose in the passage?
a to provide detailed descriptions of the instruments used at the
maragha and tabriz observatories
b to evaluate the importance of the astronomical discoveries
made by ilkhanid scientists
c to portray his patron as a generous supporter of the sciences
and a man of unusual intelligence
d to criticize ghazan for his vanity and remind him to focus on
religious and spiritual pursuits

Explanation:

The passage describes Ghazan Khan's actions related to the observatory, such as his interactions with scientists, giving orders for construction, and his interest in the operations. It shows him as a patron who supported the scientific work (like building the observatory). Option C aligns with this portrayal as it mentions portraying the patron (Ghazan Khan) as a supporter of the sciences.

Answer:

C. To portray his patron as a generous supporter of the sciences