Read the following passage and choose the item (a, b, c, or d) that best answers each of the questions about it

In AD 79, Mount Vesuvius erupted, sending out a huge cloud of dust and rock that darkened the sky. It came without warning, and the power of the explosion was so great that it was felt from hundreds miles away.

In the town of Pompeii, at the foot of the volcano, the inhabitants picked up whatever belongings they could carry and made for the open countryside. In the terrible storm that followed, dust and rock from the volcano rained down onto the town, filling the streets with deep layers of ash and poisonous gas, making it impossible for the people to get away. The town of Pompeii was completely destroyed by the rain of death, and lay lost to the world for centuries.

Excavation work did not begin until 1748, when Rocco Alcubierre found some wall paintings while he was digging at the site. In the years that followed, archaeologists realized that they had come across one of the most astonishing ruins of all time. Almost everything in Pompeii had been perfectly preserved. Several houses still had their roofs, and inside the furniture and the decorations were just as they had been centuries earlier. There were also the remains of over 2,000 people. Some of the victims had made the mistake of sheltering in their cellars, where they were killed by poisonous gases from the volcano. Others had been prevented from escaping, and in the prison were men who had been chained to the wall and left to die.

Pompeii was ____.

• A. 
  the name of a town at the foot of Mount Vesuvius
• B. 
  the name of the town mayor
• C. 
  the name of a city at the foot of Mount Vesuvius
• D. 
  the name of the country at the foot of Mount Vesuvius