C. The complicated "spiral lock" technique used by Mary, Queen of Scots, required time and skill, ensuring the letter could not be read or resealed without detection.
Historians say that writing the letter was Mary’s last act before her execution.
8 The researchers said the process of exploring letter locking is challenging because the letter packets are “designed to be broken” only by their recipients. The spiral lock requires more than 30 steps to complete. First, the pages of a letter would be folded together to form a packet. Next, a sliver cut from a page but attached at one end would be woven multiple times, back and forth, through short slots cut into the folded pages, and the paper would then be moistened so that it would swell, locking the pieces together. The loose end of the sliver would then be pasted down and possibly sealed with wax. The researchers called it “a highly complicated technique that required time, patience and great skill: one wrong move and your locking mechanism could break and you would have to start the letter again.”
9 The way the letter is locked forces the person opening the letter to tear it apart in order to read it, the researchers wrote. Because the lock breaks in many places, it is impossible to put it back together again, so it would be relatively simple to detect if the letter has been tampered with.
What is the best summary of paragraphs 7 through 9?
A.Writing the letter was Mary, Queen of Scots' final act before her execution, and the "spiral lock" technique made it impossible to read without breaking the seal.
B.The "spiral lock" process required numerous steps and ensured the letter would be destroyed if tampered with, proving Mary's ingenuity.
C.The complicated "spiral lock" technique used by Mary, Queen of Scots, required time and skill, ensuring the letter could not be read or resealed without detection.
D.Historians have confirmed that Mary, Queen of Scots wrote and sealed her last letter using a sophisticated technique, making tampering evident.
1 answer