Easter eggs, also called Paschal eggs, are decorated eggs that are usually used as gifts on the occasion of Easter or springtime celebration. As such, Easter eggs are common during the season of Eastertide (Easter season). The oldest tradition is to use dyed and painted chicken eggs, but a modern custom is to substitute chocolate eggs wrapped in colourful foil, or plastic eggs filled with confectionery such as chocolate. Although eggs, in general, were a traditional symbol of fertility and rebirth, in Christianity, for the celebration of Eastertide, Easter eggs symbolize the empty tomb of Jesus, from which Jesus resurrected. In addition, one ancient tradition was the staining of Easter eggs with the colour red "in memory of the blood of Christ, shed as at that time of his crucifixion." This custom of the Easter egg can be traced to early Christians of Mesopotamia, and from there it spread into Russia and Siberia through the Orthodox Churches, and later into Europe through the Catholic and Protestant Churches. This Christian use of eggs may have been influenced by practices in "pre-dynastic period in Egypt, as well as amid the early cultures of Mesopotamia and Crete". 

The practice of decorating eggshells as part of spring rituals is ancient, with decorated, engraved ostrich eggs found in Africa which are 60,000 years old. In the pre-dynastic period of Egypt and the early cultures of Mesopotamia and Crete, eggs were associated with death and rebirth, as well as with kingship, with decorated ostrich eggs, and representations of ostrich eggs in gold and silver, were commonly placed in graves of the ancient Sumerians and Egyptians as early as 5,000 years ago. These cultural relationships may have influenced early Christian and Islamic cultures in those areas, as well as through mercantile, religious, and political links from those areas around the Mediterranean. QUESTIONS:

Q1:
1. What kind of ancient eggs were discovered in Africa?
2. The 60,000 year old eggs of what animal were discovered in Africa?
3. What animal did the recently discovered ancient eggs belong to?
Q2:
1. Did the discovered ostrich eggs contain decorations?
2. Were there decorations on the ostrich eggs?
3. Did the discovered ostrich eggs have any designs on them?
Q3:
1. What is another name for Easter eggs?
2. How else can Easter eggs be referred to?
3. What else might Easter eggs be called?
Q4:
1. During what season can Easter eggs generally be found?
2. What is the typical season for hunting Easter eggs?
3. What is the season that is associated with Easter eggs?
Q5:
1. What is a different term for the Easter season?
2. How else can the Easter season be referenced?
3. What else might one call the season of Easter?
Q6:
1. What associations did eggs have in Mesopotamia and Crete?
2. What did the peoples of Mesopotamia and Crete associate eggs with?
3. What deeper meaning did eggs have for the peoples of Mesopotamia and Crete
Q7:
1. What was another association of eggs for ancient peoples, in addition to death and rebirth?
2. What did eggs mean to the people of Mesopotamia and Crete, apart from death and rebirth?
3. What might someone from Mesopotamia and Crete associated eggs with, if not death and rebirth?
Q8:
1. What did ancient people decorate in springtime ritual?
2. What object got decorated in the springtime rituals of Mesopotamia and Crete?
3. What would ancient people from Mesopotamia and Crete draw on during the springtime?
Q9:
1. Did early people sometimes use stand-ins for eggs?
2. Did the people of Mesopotamia and Crete also use representations of ostrich eggs for certain purposes?
3. Were representations of ostrich eggs sometimes substituted by early people in their rituals?
Q10:
1. How did early people create their representations of ostrich eggs?
2. What were the representations of ostrich eggs fabricated with?
3. What materials did early peoples use to make the fake ostrich eggs?
Q11:
1. What is a common modern substitute for dyed eggs?
2. What do people in the present day often use in place of dyed eggs?
3. What do modern people often use instead of the traditional dyed eggs?
Q12:
1. Are chocolate eggs often wrapped in colorful foil?
2. Is the foil used for chocolate eggs generally colorful?
3. Does the foil used for chocolate eggs come in bright colors?
Q13:
1. What does the Easter egg represent to Christians?
2. What is the meaning of Easter eggs in the Christian tradition?
3. What are Easter eggs symbolic of in the Christian faith?
Q14:
1. Might a Christian believe that Easter eggs resemble an empty tomb?
2. Can Easter Eggs represent Christ's empty tomb to Christians?
3. Do Christians also view Easter eggs as representing an empty tomb?
Q15:
1. Whose tomb do Easter eggs symbolize?
2. Easter eggs represent the empty tomb of what historical figure?
3. Whose empty tomb is the Easter egg said to resemble?
Q16:
1. What historical period may have influenced the custom of Easter eggs?
2. How far back can the custom of Easter eggs be traced?
3. During what period might the Easter egg tradition have originated?
