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Chapter 06: Organizational Strategy


1. A situational analysis is an assessment of the strengths and weaknesses in an organization's internal environment and
the opportunities and threats in its external environment.
a. True
b. False
ANSWER: True

2. A strategic group is a task force within a company that analyzes the company's own weaknesses to determine how
competitors could exploit them for competitive advantage.
a. True
b. False
ANSWER: False

3. A competitive advantage becomes a sustainable competitive advantage when other companies start duplicating the
value a firm is providing to customers.
a. True
b. False
ANSWER: False

4. Growth, stability, and retrenchment are all types of portfolio strategiesthat companies use to decide which businesses
they should be in.
a. True
b. False
ANSWER: False

5. Focus strategies typically work in saturated markets that competitors have large market shares or have complete
monopoly in.
a. True
b. False
ANSWER: False

6. The threat of new entrants is a measure of the degree to which barriers to entry make it easy or difficult for new
companies to get started in an industry.
a. True
b. False
ANSWER: True

7. Imperfectly imitable resources are those resources that are impossible or extremely costly or difficult to duplicate.
a. True
b. False
ANSWER: True

8. Rare resources are resources that are not controlled or possessed by many competing firms and are necessary to sustain
a competitive advantage.
a. True
b. False
ANSWER: True
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Chapter 06: Organizational Strategy

9. Strategic reference points are the less visible, internal decision-making routines, problem-solving processes, and
organizational cultures that determine how efficiently inputs can be turned into outputs.
a. True
b. False
ANSWER: False

10. According to portfolio strategy, the more businesses in which a corporation competes, the larger its overall chances of
failing.
a. True
b. False
ANSWER: False

11. Sanfase, a technology company in Rockbourne, manufactures microprocessors for computers. Its product is a lot more
powerful than its competitors. This scenario is an example of competitive inertia.
a. True
b. False
ANSWER: False

12. BlinkDream has four strategic business units (SBUs)—accommodation, insurance, music, and publishing. Its
publishing unit has always made large profits and holds a large market share in its slow-growing market. In the context of
the BCG matrix, which of the following categories of SBUs best describes the publishing unit?
a. Stars
b. Cash cows
c. Question marks
d. Dogs
ANSWER: b

13. In the context of portfolio strategy, _____ is the purchase of a company by another company.
a. divestiture
b. demerger
c. acquisition
d. restructuring
ANSWER: c

14. Ian Auto manufactures agricultural equipment. Its agricultural equipment is very popular in countries that have
majority of their income coming from agricultural products. In the context of industry-level strategy, Ian Auto is most
likely using a(n) _____.
a. diversification strategy
b. focus strategy
c. divestment strategy
d. adaptive strategy
ANSWER: b

15. FreeSpirit is a global consumer products company. It manufactures a number of new products ranging from personal
care to food and beverages. Its products are sold all across the world, and it continuously keeps searching for new markets
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Chapter 06: Organizational Strategy


to sell its products. It has also doubled its investment to market its products, and it invests heavily in social media and
other advertisement mediums. In the context of adaptive strategies, FreeSpirit is most likely to be categorized as a(n)
_____.
a. reactor
b. analyzer
c. cost leader
d. prospector
ANSWER: d

16. Hankson Corp. has five strategic business units (SBUs)—information technology, insurance, publishing, fine arts, and
tourism. It invests the majority of its funds in the information technology unit as the unit has a large market share and
generates large amounts of its profits in a fast-growing market. In the context of the BCG matrix, which of the following
categories of SBUs best describes the information technology unit?
a. Stars
b. Cash cows
c. Question marks
d. Dogs
ANSWER: a

17. Bennyson Corp. has five strategic business units (SBUs)—information technology, construction, education, consumer
products, and energy. Its energy unit has a large market share in the industry and generates the majority of its profits.
Bennyson is also considering investing more funds into the unit as the industry has been rapidly growing. In the context of
the BCG matrix, which of the following categories of SBUs best describes the energy unit?
a. Stars
b. Cash cows
c. Question marks
d. Dogs
ANSWER: a

18. TagWear, a company that manufactures shoes, offers customized lightweight and durable shoes in different colors and
sizes to compete with its rival company's shoes. In this scenario, which of the following strategies is TagWear using to
reduce its rival's market share?
a. A response strategy
b. An attack strategy
c. A recovery strategy
d. An acquisition strategy
ANSWER: b

19. TinkTV, PopoNet, and Kreti Broadcast are merging together to form a large television network called Tale Broadcast.
This was done in an attempt to increase profitability by combining the customers and services owned by the three
companies. Which of the following grand strategies does the given scenario best exemplify?
a. The stability strategy
b. The retrenchment strategy
c. The growth strategy
d. The acquisition strategy
ANSWER: c
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20. Stenikson has three strategic business units (SBUs)—video games, fashion, and electronics. The company is planning
to invest more money into its video games unit because it is a fast-growing market, even though the company has a very
small share in the market. In the context of the BCG matrix, which of the following categories of SBUs best describes the
video games unit?
a. Stars
b. Cash cows
c. Question marks
d. Dogs
ANSWER: c

21. Andersen Major has five strategic business units (SBUs)—technology, fashion, food and beverage, consumer
products, and electronics. Its food and beverage unit has a small share in a rapidly growing sector, and the company
believes that investing more money into the unit could lead to large profits in the future. In the context of the BCG matrix,
which of the following categories of SBUs best describes the food and beverage unit?
a. Stars
b. Cash cows
c. Question marks
d. Dogs
ANSWER: c

22. Cajemp Inc. is a real estate developer that has been in the market for several years. Most real estate developers are
now constructing their projects using concrete blocks as they are more durable and easier to lay out when compared to
traditional brick and mortar. Cajemp, however, has been reluctant to use concrete blocks because its brick and mortar
houses have been selling well so far. They will continue to sell the same even if new competitors and better products enter
the market. Which of the following concepts is illustrated in this scenario?
a. Strategic dissonance
b. Competitive inertia
c. Competitive advantage
d. Strategic alliance
ANSWER: b

23. Masceo, an oil and gas company, suffered major losses due to damaged oil pipelines. In an attempt to cover its costs, it
laid off several employees and closed down three of its refineries. Which of the following grand strategies was used by
Masceo in this scenario?
a. The stability strategy
b. The growth strategy
c. The retrenchment strategy
d. The acquisition strategy
ANSWER: c

24. _____ is a measure of the intensity of competitive behavior among companies in an industry.
a. Bargaining power of firms
b. Character of the rivalry
c. Threat of new entrants
d. Threat of substitute products
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ANSWER: b

25. In the context of the BCG matrix, which of the following businesses would be classified as a question mark?
a. PrimeSmart, a smartphone manufacturer that is the market leader in a rapidly growing industry
b. RainTech, an electronics company that is struggling for market share in a fast-growing industry
c. HappyTot, a children's toy company that has been earning steady profits in a slow-growing industry
d. RigsWheels, a tire manufacturer that has negligible market share in a slow-growing industry
ANSWER: b

26. Which of the following best defines a SWOT analysis?


a. It involves assessment of the strengths and weaknesses in an organization's internal environment.
b. It measures the tangible rather than the intangible assets of an organization.
c. It is conducted by regulatory agencies to measure the performance of organizations.
d. Its aim is to review internal processes independently of the external industry environment.
ANSWER: a

27. Kensei Corp. has three strategic business units (SBUs)—pharmaceutical, publishing, and consulting. Its
pharmaceutical unit is relatively new in the sector and does not have a large market share. The pharmaceutical sector is a
fast-growing sector, and companies with a large market share in the sector have been earning large profits. In the context
of the BCG matrix, which of the following categories of SBUs best describes the pharmaceutical unit?
a. Stars
b. Cash cows
c. Question marks
d. Dogs
ANSWER: c

28. Operop Inc., a technology company in Brookeep, manufactures digital cameras. Its cameras have the highest pixel
density, multiple zoom options, and a variety of picture effects that none of its competitors can match up to. This ability of
producing superior quality cameras is the company's _____.
a. strategic reference point
b. strategic alternative
c. distinctive competence
d. competitive resonance
ANSWER: c

29. Jake Lamps manufactures lamps, lights, shades, and bulbs. Its lighting lasts long and saves power, and it is superior in
quality when compared to all its competitors. Its products are being sold at the lowest price in the market. In the context of
industry-level strategy, the company is most likely using a(n) _____.
a. cost leadership strategy
b. focus strategy
c. divestment strategy
d. adaptive strategy
ANSWER: a

30. In the context of direct competition,__________is defined as the degree to which two companies have overlapping
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products, services, or customers in multiple markets.
a. related diversification
b. resource similarity
c. direct competition
d. market commonality
ANSWER: d

31. _____ is a competitive advantage that other companies have tried unsuccessfully to duplicate and have, for the
moment, stopped trying to duplicate.
a. Sustainable competitive advantage
b. Comparative advantage
c. Revealed competitive advantage
d. Core competency advantage
ANSWER: a

32. Brenden Corp. has five strategic business units (SBUs)—telecommunication, trucking, electronics, energy, and oil
exploration. The telecommunication unit has slowed down in terms of growth and is now dominated mainly by a few
large companies. Brenden Corp. has a low market share in the industry and does not generate enough revenue to even
cover its costs. In the context of the BCG matrix, which of the following categories of SBUs best describes the
telecommunication unit?
a. Stars
b. Cash cows
c. Question marks
d. Dogs
ANSWER: d

33. Klivinich is a manufacturer of oral hygiene products. In addition to manufacturing and selling oral hygiene products,
Klivinich also focuses on educating its customers on oral hygiene and dental problems. All its employees are trained to
answer questions and help customers with oral hygiene and dental problems. This has helped Klivinich _____.
a. produce low-cost products
b. procure rare resources
c. achieve a competitive advantage
d. form a strategic alliance
ANSWER: c

34. DramPharma is a company that manufactures and sells medicine to treat Huntington's disease, a rare genetic disorder.
The company controls 80 percent of the world's industry in its segment. The company aims to seek steady growth in the
industry. In terms of adaptive strategies, DramPharma would most likely be categorized as a(n) _____.
a. reactor
b. defender
c. analyzer
d. prospector
ANSWER: b

35. Smarty Tots manufactures children's clothing and prices them at twice the price of other children's clothing brands.

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The clothes sell exceptionally well because customers believe that its clothes are made of non-irritant and non-allergenic
fabric. Smarty Tots's competitors do not have access to this type of fabric and cannot produce the same quality of
clothing. The special fabric used in the clothing gives Smarty Tots _____.
a. a sustainable competitive advantage
b. the advantage of undifferentiated marketing
c. an oligopolistic advantage
d. the advantage of competitive inertia
ANSWER: a

36. Winston Corp. manufactures and sells toy cars. These toy cars are perfect imitational miniature versions of real cars.
Inspired by the success of Winston Corp., Neil Danon, a plastic ware manufacturer in Orowella also started manufacturing
toy cars. Which of the following adaptive strategies is used by Neil Danon?
a. Defenders adaptive strategy
b. Prospectors adaptive strategy
c. Analyzers adaptive strategy
d. Reactors adaptive strategy
ANSWER: c

37. __________is a measure of the intensity of competitive behavior among companies in an industry.
a. The threat of new entrants
b. Character of the rivalry
c. The threat of substitute products or services
d. Bargaining power of suppliers
ANSWER: b

38. Which of the following statements is true of direct competition?


a. It is determined by market commonality and resource similarity.
b. It encourages the production of perfectly imitable resources.
c. It uses cost leadership to produce a specialized product for limited customers.
d. It minimizes the effects of industry competition.
ANSWER: a

39. In the context of the BCG matrix, which of the following businesses would be classified as a star?
a. PrimeSmart, a smartphone manufacturer that is the market leader in a rapidly growing industry
b. RainTech, an electronics company that is struggling for market share in a fast-growing industry
c. HappyTot, a children's toy company that has been earning steady profits in a slow-growing industry
d. RigsWheels, a tire manufacturer that has negligible market share in a slow-growing industry
ANSWER: a

40. In the context of the BCG matrix, which of the following businesses would be classified as a dog?
a. Ultimo Phone, a smartphone manufacturer that is the market leader in a rapidly growing industry
b. Brain Cash, a finance company that is struggling for market share in a fast-growing industry
c. Cleep Sweep, a detergent company that has been earning steady profits in a slow-growing industry
d. Bigs Steel, a metal manufacturer that has negligible market share in a slow-growing industry

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ANSWER: d

41. Break Technologies has five strategic business units (SBUs)—computers, refrigerators, washing machines, air
conditioners, and televisions. Its computers unit is quite profitable in spite of operating in a slow-growing market, and it is
profitable enough to provide funds for the operation of the other business units as well. In the context of the BCG matrix,
which of the following categories of SBUs best describes the computers unit?
a. Stars
b. Cash cows
c. Question marks
d. Dogs
ANSWER: b

42. Zinfizz is a beverage manufacturer. It presents WYB, a zero-calorie drink to compete with MoodFresh's Shire, a low-
calorie drink. When WYB is released in the market, MoodFresh cuts down the price on Shire to match WYB's price.
Identify the strategic move that is most likely being implemented by MoodFresh in this scenario.
a. Rejoinder
b. Attack
c. Recovery
d. Acquisition
ANSWER: b

43. Jen&Durand has three strategic business units (SBUs)—entertainment and recreation, food and beverage, and apparel
and accessories. Its apparel & accessories unit is extremely successful and has been in the market for many years, and it
has acquired a large market share in its time. The market growth of the apparel & accessories sector has saturated, and
new companies are reluctant to enter it. In the context of the BCG matrix, which of the following categories of SBUs best
describes the computers unit?
a. Stars
b. Cash cows
c. Question marks
d. Dogs
ANSWER: b

44. __________are companies using an adaptive strategy that seeks to minimize risk and maximize profits by following
or imitating the proven successes of prospectors.
a. Defenders
b. Analyzers
c. Prospectors
d. Reactors;
ANSWER: b

45. Which of the following best defines competitive inertia?


a. It is a reluctance to change strategies or competitive practices that have been successful in the past.
b. It is a risk-seeking strategy that aims to create and acquire companies in completely unrelated businesses.
c. It is a discrepancy between a company's intended strategy and the strategic actions managers take when
implementing that strategy.

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Chapter 06: Organizational Strategy

d. It is a corporate-level strategy that minimizes risk by diversifying investment among various businesses or
product lines.
ANSWER: a

46. SkyScape, a company that manufactures computer processors, launched a new product called ChipOne. This launch
was a countermove against another product launched by GreenChip, SkyScape's competitor. Which of the following
strategies was used by SkyScape to defend its market share?
a. A response strategy
b. An amalgamation strategy
c. A recovery strategy
d. An acquisition strategy
ANSWER: a

47. Cardwire Inc. has decided to lower the price of all its products to keep up with its competitors. To achieve this, the
company needed to lower its overall costs. However, the procurement department at Cardwire has been spending twice its
allotted budget to buy raw materials. Which of the following best illustrates the situation at Cardwire?
a. Competitive inertia
b. Job deskilling
c. Strategic dissonance
d. Price fixing
ANSWER: c

48. JDB Cars has launched a new range of premium cars in Lakamba. The citizens of Lakamba are extremely wealthy and
often spend a lot of their earnings on premium cars and houses. In this scenario, the company is most likely using a(n)
_____.
a. diversification strategy
b. focus strategy
c. divestment strategy
d. adaptive strategy
ANSWER: b

49. A competitive advantage becomes a sustainable competitive advantage when:


a. a company collaborates with its competitors to obtain a larger market share.
b. other companies cannot duplicate the value a firm is providing to customers.
c. a company uses a competitive move designed to reduce a rival's market share or profits.
d. market commonality is large, and companies have overlapping products or services.
ANSWER: b

50. Which of the following best defines a distinctive competence?


a. It is what a company can make, do, or perform better than its competitors.
b. It is creating or acquiring companies in completely unrelated businesses.
c. It is the extent to which a competitor has similar amounts and kinds of resources.
d. It is the competitive move designed to reduce a rival's market share or profits.
ANSWER: a

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51. Funsase, a clothing company in Rockbourne, manufactures clothing with micro-cool, a special type of fabric that can
absorb heat and keep the individual wearing the clothes cool in the summer. None of its competitors have been able to
manufacture this type of clothing. This ability of producing superior quality clothing is the company's _____.
a. strategic reference point
b. strategic alternative
c. distinctive competence
d. competitive resonance
ANSWER: c

52. Heeleo Inc. is a television manufacturer that has been in the market for several years. Most television companies are
now manufacturing LED and smart televisions as they provide more utility and a better viewing experience when
compared to direct view televisions. Heeleo, however, has been reluctant to adopt new strategies because it thinks that its
direct view televisions were selling well when it first started and will continue to sell the same way even if new
competitors and better products enter the market. Which of the following concepts is illustrated in this scenario?
a. Strategic dissonance
b. Competitive inertia
c. Competitive advantage
d. Strategic alliance
ANSWER: b

53. Organizations can achieve a competitive advantage by using their resources to:
a. create strategies that are simultaneously being implemented by competitors.
b. duplicate the value a competitor firm provides to its customers.
c. provide greater value for customers than competitors can.
d. foster competitive inertia.
ANSWER: c

54. __________is a strategy for reducing risk by buying a variety of items so that the failure of one stock or one business
does not doom the entire portfolio.
a. Restructuring
b. Diversification
c. Retrenchment
d. Exit planning
ANSWER: b

55. Which of the following can help managers improve the speed and accuracy with which they determine the need for
strategic change?
a. Fostering competitive inertia
b. Promoting strategic alliances with leading firms
c. Looking for signs of strategic dissonance
d. Limiting design iterations
ANSWER: c

56. FasterRides Inc. has introduced a new bike in the market. Majority of its profits come from the sale of bikes. The
company is recognized worldwide for its ability to design and produce bikes with superior handling, smooth transmission,

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Chapter 06: Organizational Strategy


powerful brakes, and other premium features that its competitors are lacking. This ability to produce superior quality bikes
is the company's _____.
a. strategic reference point
b. strategic alternative
c. distinctive competence
d. competitive resonance
ANSWER: c

57. JoeChoe and SanPants are two popular clothing companies. Whenever JoeChoe launches a new range of clothing,
SanPants also launches something similar, and vice versa. This ensures that neither company gets a massive lead over the
other in terms of market share. Which of the following strategies is being used by JoeChoe and SanPants in this scenario?
a. A response strategy
b. An amalgamation strategy
c. A recovery strategy
d. An acquisition strategy
ANSWER: a

58. In the context of direct competition between firms _____ largely affects response capability, that is, how quickly and
forcefully a company can respond to an attack.
a. diversification
b. cost leadership
c. differentiation
d. resource similarity
ANSWER: d

59. Renee Farm grows genetically modified fruits and vegetables by using nutrient enriched soil and chemically enhanced
fertilizers. Its products are extremely popular among health conscious individuals who believe that natural fruits and
vegetables do not have adequate amount of nutrients. Renee Farm's products are popular even though their market is very
niche. In the context of industry-level strategy, Renee Farm is most likely using a(n) _____.
a. diversification strategy
b. focus strategy
c. divestment strategy
d. adaptive strategy
ANSWER: b

60. __________is creating or acquiring companies that share similar products, manufacturing, marketing, technology, or
cultures.
a. Product positioning
b. Retrenchment
c. Market targeting
d. Related diversification
ANSWER: d

61. Which of the following best defines cost leadership?


a. It is the positioning strategy of producing a product or service of acceptable quality at consistently lower
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Chapter 06: Organizational Strategy

production costs than competitors can so that a firm can offer the product or service at the lowest price in the
industry.
b. It is the positioning strategy of providing a product or service that is sufficiently different from competitors'
offerings that customers are willing to pay a premium price for it.
c. It is the positioning strategy to produce a specialized product or service for a limited, specially targeted group
of customers in a particular geographic region or market segment.
d. It is the positioning strategy to grow brand performance by reacting to changes in the external environment
after they occur instead of following a consistent adaptive strategy.
ANSWER: a

62. Jameson&Dawson has four strategic business units (SBUs)—agriculture, auto, advertising, and accommodations. The
agriculture industry is a rapidly growing industry, and Jameson&Dawson's SBU holds majority of the market share in the
industry. Hence, the company earns large profits from its agriculture unit and invests majority of its funds in it. In the
context of the BCG matrix, which of the following categories of SBUs best describes the agriculture unit?
a. Stars
b. Cash cows
c. Question marks
d. Dogs
ANSWER: a

63. PeoplePapers, a greeting cards manufacturing company, has retail stores in most parts of the country. It hires its
employees from the best universities around the world and uses the best equipment in its manufacturing processes. In this
scenario, the organization's processes, its employees, and its equipment are examples of its:
a. reserves.
b. resources.
c. variable costs.
d. overheads.
ANSWER: b

64. BoundStar and ClipKlik are two of the biggest companies in the smartphone industry. When BoundStar launched a
new ultra-slim smart phone, ClipKlik also shortly launched a super-sleek smartphone. Phones launched by both the
companies are similar in quality and build. ClipKlik will be able to remain competitive in the market though BoundStar
launched its phone before ClipKlik. Which of the following strategies was used by ClipKlik to defend its market share?
a. A response strategy
b. An amalgamation strategy
c. A recovery strategy
d. An acquisition strategy
ANSWER: a

65. Which of the following statements is true of analyzers?


a. They are the first to bring innovative new products to market.
b. They do not follow a consistent strategy.
c. They are a blend of the defender and prospector strategies.
d. They react to changes in their external environment after they occur.
ANSWER: c

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66. Ziff Corp. was a leading electronics firm for about three decades. As new competitors entered the industry, Ziff Corp's
market share dropped. The managers at Ziff Corp. refuse to change any of their strategies, as they believe that their
existing strategies will get them back to becoming the market leaders as they did in the past. This scenario is an example
of _____.
a. distinctive competence
b. strategic dissonance
c. strategic uncertainty
d. competitive inertia
ANSWER: d

67. A(n) _____ is a countermove, prompted by a rival's attack, that is designed to defend or improve a company's market
share or profit.
a. response
b. attack
c. recovery
d. acquisition
ANSWER: a

68. Spade and Marcher Corp. manufactures and sells toy guns. These toy guns are a perfect imitation of real weapons.
Inspired by Spade and Marcher's success, Hudy & Sons, an arms manufacturer in Korowlla, starts to manufacture toy
guns too. Which of the following adaptive strategies is used by Hudy & Sons?
a. Defenders
b. Prospectors
c. Analyzers
d. Reactors
ANSWER: c

69. Tots County manufactures clothing and apparel exclusively for children in the age group of one to six years. In this
scenario, the company is most likely using a(n) _____.
a. diversification strategy
b. focus strategy
c. divestment strategy
d. adaptive strategy
ANSWER: b

70. In the context of Porter's five industry forces, the threat of new entrants can be defined as
a. a measure of the degree to which barriers to entry make it easy or difficult for new companies to get started in
an industry.
b. a measure of the intensity of competitive behavior among companies in an industry.
c. a measure of the ease with which customers can find substitutes for an industry's products or services.
d. a measure of the influence that customers have on the firm's prices.
ANSWER: a

71. Brenden Industries has five strategic business units (SBUs)—petroleum extraction, groceries, jewelry,
telecommunication, and oil clothing. The petroleum extraction unit is costing the company a huge amount of money. It

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has not earned any profit so far nor will it earn any profit in the future as the oil fields are diminishing and the company
has a small share in this market. In the context of the BCG matrix, which of the following categories of SBUs best
describes the petroleum extraction unit?
a. Stars
b. Cash cows
c. Question marks
d. Dogs
ANSWER: d

72. Serrano, a clothing and apparel company, suffered major losses when one of its warehouses was destroyed in a fire
mishap. In an attempt to make up for these losses, it had to sell one of its product lines to a rival company. Which of the
following grand strategies was used by Serrano in this scenario?
a. The stability strategy
b. The growth strategy
c. The retrenchment strategy
d. The acquisition strategy
ANSWER: c

73. SweetCream is an ice cream manufacturer. It sells Guilt-Free, a zero-calorie ice cream, which competes with
FlavorBell's MooSweet, a low-calorie ice cream. FlavorBell reduces MooSweet's prices to match Guilt-Free's prices.
Identify the strategic move that is most likely being implemented by FlavorBell in this scenario.
a. Rejoinder
b. Attack
c. Recovery
d. Acquisition
ANSWER: b

74. A__________is the positioning strategy of using cost leadership or differentiation to produce a specialized product or
service for a limited, specially targeted group of customers in a particular geographic region or market segment.
a. focus strategy
b. retrenchment strategy
c. growth strategy
d. portfolio strategy
ANSWER: a

75. Bob's Assembly is a hardware manufacturer. It specializes in builders' hardware for doors, cabinets, windows, and
bathrooms. Bob's Assembly products are economical and more durable than 95% of its competitors' products. This
scenario illustrates the concept of _____.
a. core capability
b. distinctive competence
c. competitive inertia
d. strategic dissonance
ANSWER: b

76. Maymart Inc. sells its products at the lowest prices in the industry, and it believes that this is the best way to stay

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ahead of its competition. It has also not compromised on the quality of its products as Maymart's suppliers and vendors
sell best quality raw materials at the lowest prices. In the context of Porter's positioning strategies, which of the following
strategies has been adopted by Maymart?
a. The cost leadership strategy
b. The differentiation strategy
c. The price-fixing strategy
d. The diversification strategy
ANSWER: a

77. __________refers to the strategic actions taken after retrenchment to return to a growth strategy.
a. Acquisition
b. Stability
c. Recovery
d. Normalization
ANSWER: c

78. Keplem has a business unit in the insurance sector. The insurance sector is a slow-growing industry, and Keplem does
not have a large market share in the industry. In the context of the BCG matrix, which of the following categories of
SBUs best describes Keplem's business unit?
a. Stars
b. Cash cows
c. Question marks
d. Dogs
ANSWER: d

79. Which of the following is the last step of a strategy-making process?


a. Conducting situational analysis
b. Assessing the need for strategic change
c. Choosing strategic alternatives
d. Evaluating strategic alternatives
ANSWER: c

80. Which of the following best defines cash cows in the BCG matrix?
a. They are the companies that have a large share of a fast-growing market.
b. They are the companies that have a small share of a fast-growing market.
c. They are the companies that have a large share of a slow-growing market.
d. They are the companies that have a small share of a slow-growing market.
ANSWER: c

81. Brickwall Builders is a real estate builder and developer. It specializes in building premium villas, office spaces,
warehouses, and retail stores. Buildings of Brickwall Builders are economical, have a high resale value, and are available
at very low down payment when compared to its competitors' buildings. This scenario illustrates the concept of _____.
a. core capability
b. distinctive competence
c. competitive inertia
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d. strategic dissonance
ANSWER: b

82. Which of the following conditions must be met if a firm's resources are to be used to achieve a sustainable competitive
advantage?
a. The resources must be low-cost and commutable.
b. The resources must be controlled by other competing firms.
c. The resources must be perfectly imitable.
d. The resources must be valuable, rare, and nonsubstitutable.
ANSWER: d

83. Which of the following best defines strategic dissonance?


a. It is a reluctance to change strategies or competitive practices that have been successful in the past.
b. It is a discrepancy between a company's intended strategy and the strategic actions taken by managers while
implementing that strategy.
c. It is a risk-seeking strategy that aims to create and acquire companies in completely unrelated businesses.
d. It is a corporate-level strategy that minimizes risk by diversifying investment among various businesses or
product lines.
ANSWER: b

84. Arboral Inc., an auto manufacturing company, has been extremely successful in its home country. In an attempt to
increase its profitability, it has opened up new manufacturing plants and showrooms in three more countries. Which of the
following grand strategies was used by Arboral in this scenario?
a. The stability strategy
b. The retrenchment strategy
c. The growth strategy
d. The acquisition strategy
ANSWER: c

85. Which of the following statements is true of the BCG matrix?


a. It is used to guide the strategic alternatives that managers of individual businesses may use.
b. It focuses on increasing profits or the number of places in which a company does business.
c. It focuses on improving the way in which a company sells the same products to the same customers.
d. It is used to categorize a corporation's businesses by growth rate and relative market share.
ANSWER: d

86. Which of the following is the first step of a strategy-making process?


a. Conducting situational analysis
b. Assessing the need for strategic change
c. Choosing strategic alternatives
d. Evaluating strategic alternatives
ANSWER: b

87. In the context of direct competition between firms, _____ affects the likelihood of an attack or a response to an attack.
a. diversification
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b. cost leadership
c. differentiation
d. market commonality
ANSWER: d

88. __________is one of the grand strategies that focuses on increasing profits, revenues, market share, or the number of
places in which a company does business.
a. Retrenchment strategy
b. Stability strategy
c. Recovery strategy
d. Growth strategy
ANSWER: d

89. SmartHand, a company that manufactures wrist watches, has started manufacturing and selling sunglasses in the
American market. The products turn out to be a huge success. Inspired by SmartHand's success, Jeremy & Daniel,
manufacturers of wrist watches in Europe, start selling sunglasses in the European market. In the context of adaptive
strategies, Jeremy & Daniel would most likely be categorized as a(n) _____.
a. defender
b. prospector
c. analyzer
d. reactor
ANSWER: c

90. Ren's Cakes, a bakery, is extremely successful and is always full of customers in the location it is currently set up in. It
wants to increase its profitability, and it believes that opening up more bakeries in the country will be the best way to go
about it. Which of the following grand strategies is Ren's Cakes planning to use in this scenario?
a. The stability strategy
b. The retrenchment strategy
c. The growth strategy
d. The acquisition strategy
ANSWER: c

91. Prime Loader has three strategic business units (SBUs)—railway lines, banking, and coal mining. Because of a small
market share, the company is not earning a profit in the banking sector, even though the banking sector is a fast-growing
market. In the context of the BCG matrix, which of the following categories of SBUs best describes the banking unit?
a. Stars
b. Cash cows
c. Question marks
d. Dogs
ANSWER: c

92. According to the BCG matrix,__________are companies that have a small share of a fast-growing market.
a. question marks
b. cash cows
c. stars
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d. dogs
ANSWER: a

93. __________are used by managers to measure whether their firm has developed the core competencies that it needs to
achieve a sustainable competitive advantage.
a. Strategic reference points
b. Corporate-level strategies
c. Distinctive competencies
d. Core capabilities
ANSWER: a

94. Jem Dons has three strategic business units (SBUs)—smartphones, healthcare, and accounting. Its smartphone unit is
its most profitable unit and is the current market leader in the rapidly growing industry. In the context of the BCG matrix,
which of the following categories of SBUs best describes the smartphones unit?
a. Stars
b. Cash cows
c. Question marks
d. Dogs
ANSWER: a

95. Ziff Corp. was a leading electronics firm for about three decades. As new competitors entered the industry, Ziff Corp's
market share dropped. The managers at Ziff Corp. refuse to change any of their strategies, as they believe that their
existing strategies will help them become one of the market leaders as they did in the past. This scenario is an example of
_____.
a. distinctive competence
b. strategic dissonance
c. strategic uncertainty
d. competitive inertia
ANSWER: d

96. __________are companies using an adaptive strategy aimed at protecting strategic positions by seeking moderate,
steady growth and by offering a limited range of high-quality products and services to a well-defined set of customers.
a. Reactors
b. Prospectors
c. Defenders
d. Analyzers
ANSWER: c

97. In the context of the BCG matrix, which of the following businesses would be classified as a cash cow?
a. PrimeSmart, a smartphone manufacturer that is the market leader in a rapidly growing industry
b. Brain Cash, a finance company that is struggling for market share in a fast-growing industry
c. HappyTot, a children's toy company that has been earning steady profits in a slow-growing industry
d. Bigs Steel, a metal manufacturer that has negligible market share in a slow-growing industry
ANSWER: c

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98. In the context of adaptive strategies, which of the following best describes prospectors?
a. They seek moderate, steady growth by offering a limited range of products and services to a well-defined set
of customers.
b. They seek fast growth by searching for new market opportunities, encouraging risk taking, and being the first
to bring innovative new products to market.
c. They try to simultaneously minimize risk and maximize profits by following or imitating the proven successes
of firms.
d. They develop and follow a single strategy for extensive periods of time, irrespective of any changes taking
place in the industry.
ANSWER: b

99. __________is the positioning strategy of providing a product or service that is sufficiently different from competitors'
offerings that customers are willing to pay a premium price for it.
a. Differentiation
b. Retrenchment
c. Commonality
d. Diversification
ANSWER: a

100. Chimera Inc., a chemical company, has been facing a loss in business. In an attempt to stop the declining
profitability, it removed petrochemical products from its product list and concentrated on specialty chemicals, a less
capital-intensive business. Which of the following grand strategies was used by Chimera in this scenario?
a. The stability strategy
b. The growth strategy
c. The retrenchment strategy
d. The acquisition strategy
ANSWER: c

101. Limeria Inc., an industrial paint manufacturing company, has been incurring losses. In an attempt to stop this, it
removed synthetic distempers from its product list and concentrated on enamel paints, a less capital-intensive business.
Which of the following grand strategies was used by Limeria in this scenario?
a. The stability strategy
b. The growth strategy
c. The retrenchment strategy
d. The acquisition strategy
ANSWER: c

102. In the context of adaptive strategies, which of the following is true of defenders?
a. They aggressively hold their current strategic position by doing the best job they can to hold on to customers
in a particular market segment.
b. They seek fast growth by searching for new market opportunities, encouraging risk taking, and being the first
to bring innovative new products to market.
c. They try to simultaneously minimize risk and maximize profits by following or imitating the proven successes
of prospectors.
d. They do not follow a consistent strategy and tend to react to changes in their external environment after they
occur.
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ANSWER: a

103. Which of the following statements is true of a portfolio strategy?


a. It is a corporate-level strategy with the purpose of reducing risk in the entire collection of stocks.
b. It emphasizes on improving the way in which the company sells the same products.
c. It measures the intensity of competitive behavior among companies in an industry.
d. It focuses on turning around very poor company performance by significant cost reductions.
ANSWER: a

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Another random document with
no related content on Scribd:
Assyrian never committed that fault. He knew that the great flesh-
eating beasts never grew fat, that they were all nerve and muscle,
without any of those adipose tissues which reach so great a
development in herbivorous animals, like the sheep or ox, or those
that eat anything that comes, like the pig. Look at the bronze lion
from Khorsabad figured in our Plate XI., and see how lean he is at
the croup in spite of the power in his limbs, and how the bones of his
shoulder and thigh stand out beneath the skin.
This characteristic is less strongly marked in the bas-reliefs,
which hardly enjoy the same facilities for emphasising structure as
work in the round. On the other hand the other features of the
leonine physiognomy are rendered with singular energy. Anything
finer in its way than the head of the colossal lion from Nimroud
figured in our Plate VIII. can hardly be imagined.

Fig. 80.—Wounded lioness. Height of slab about 15 inches. British Museum.


Drawn by Saint-Elme Gautier.
Fig. 81.—Niche decorated with two lions.
Height 6½ inches. British Museum.
Drawn by Saint-Elme Gautier.
Seeing how familiar they were with this animal, the artists of
Mesopotamia could hardly have failed to employ him as a motive in
ornament. In such a case, of course, they did not insist so strongly
upon fidelity to fact as in the historical bas-reliefs, but whether they
made use of his figure as a whole or confined themselves to the
head or paws, they always preserved the true character and
originality of the forms. This may be clearly seen in an object
belonging to the British Museum (Fig. 81). We do not exactly know
where it was found and we cannot say what may have been its use.
It is a kind of shallow niche cut from a fossiliferous rock.[193] It is
hardly deep enough to have sheltered an idol or statuette of any
kind. But whatever it may have been nothing could be more natural
than the action of the two lions that show themselves at the two
upper angles. They hang tightly to the edge of the stone with their
extended claws, giving rise to a happy, piquant, and unstudied effect.
The scabbard in our next illustration is no less happily conceived; the
lions at its foot who seem about to climb up the sheath with the
playfulness of kittens, should be noticed (Fig. 82). Again, we find the
lion introduced into those embroideries on the royal robes of which
we have already had occasion to speak. In the example figured here
(Fig. 83) he is fighting an animal whose feet and legs are those of a
bull, although its stature is greater and its form more slender than
those of the antelope. It appears to be a unicorn, a fantastic animal
that has always played a great part in oriental fables.

Fig. 82.—Sword and scabbard.


From a Khorsabad bas-relief.
Louvre.
The lion’s head with its powerful muscular development, its fine
mouth, and picturesque masses of floating hair, has often furnished
ceramists, gold and silversmiths, and art workmen of every kind with
motives for use upon their creations. A fine example of this is
reproduced on the title-pages of these volumes. It belongs to the
Luynes collection in the French National Library. The material is
gold, and a small staple attached to the neck shows that it once
belonged to some object now lost. Our reproduction is of the same
size as the original. In spite of its small dimensions its workmanship
is no less remarkable for freedom and nobility of style than the
colossal head from Nimroud. Something of the same qualities but
with more finish in the details is to be found in a terra-cotta fragment
covered with a green glaze which now belongs to the collection in
the Louvre. These objects, which have come down to us in
considerable numbers, must have been used as applied work, in the
decoration of vases, utensils, and other small pieces of furniture (Fig.
84). The object figured at the end of the last chapter belongs to the
same class. There is a hollow or mortice in its base by which it was
attached to some knife or poignard to form its handle.
The lion’s paw was used in the same fashion and no less often.
Its expressive form and the elegant curves of its claws are found on
numerous altars, tables, and thrones (Vol. I., Fig. 168; and above,
Fig. 47).[194]

Fig. 83.—Combat between a lion and a unicorn. From Layard.


Fig. 84.—Lion’s head in
enamelled earthenware. Louvre.
Actual size.
Drawn by Saint-Elme Gautier.
We find the same truth of design in many small earthenware
articles, even when they reproduce a type less interesting and less
majestic than that of the lion. A good instance of this is afforded by
the goat of white earthenware covered with a blue glaze which was
found at Khorsabad by Place (Fig. 85). It is but a sketch. The
modeller has not entered into any details of the form, but he has
thoroughly grasped its general character. The terra-cottas properly
speaking, those that have received no glaze or enamel, are, as a
rule, less carefully executed, but even in them we can perceive,
though in a less degree, the certainty of eye, the same promptitude
in seizing and rendering the special physiognomy of an animal. We
feel this very strongly in what is by no means the work of a skilful
modeller, the dog figured below (Fig. 86). The head and fore
quarters of one of the mastiffs of the bas-reliefs may here be
recognized (see Fig. 72).
Fig. 85.—Recumbent goat. Enamelled earthenware.
Actual size.
Drawn by Saint-Elme Gautier.
The same desire for precision, or rather comprehension, of form,
is to be found even in those imaginary beings which the artists of
Chaldæa and Assyria took such pleasure in multiplying. Although in
their fantastic creations they brought together features belonging to
animals of totally different classes, they made a point of drawing
those features with the greatest precision. This is well illustrated by
an object in the Luynes collection (Fig. 87). Nowhere is the arbitrary
combination of forms having nothing in common pushed farther than
here. A ram’s horns grow on a bull’s head, which, again, has a bird’s
beak; the body, the tail, the fore paws are those of a lion, while the
hind legs and feet and the wings that spring from the shoulders are
borrowed from the eagle.[195]
Fig. 86.—Dog. Terra-cotta. British
Museum. Height about 5 inches.
Drawn by Saint-Elme Gautier.
We have already described the most remarkable of all these
composite types, the man-headed bull and lion; we have attempted
to explain the intellectual idea which gave them birth; we have yet to
point out a variety which is not without importance. The lion has
sometimes been given, not only the head, but also the arms and
bust of a man. In one of the entrances to the palace of Assurbanipal
there was a colossus of this kind (Vol. I., Fig. 114).[196] With one arm
this man-lion presses against his body what seems to be a goat or a
deer, while the other, hanging at his side, holds a flowering branch.
This figure, like almost all of those found in the doorways, is winged.
Another example of the same type is to be found in a bas-relief of
Assurbanipal; it is, however, simplified, and it looks, on the whole,
more probable (Fig. 88). The wings have disappeared; there are but
two natures to be joined, and the junction seems to be made without
effort; the lion furnishes strength and rapidity, the man the various
powers of the arm and hand, and the beauty of the thinking and
speaking head. The divine character of the personage thus figured is
indicated by the three pairs of horns bent round the dome-like tiara,
and also by the place he occupies in the inferior compartment of a
relief on which, at the top, appear those lion-headed genii we have
already figured (Vol. I., Fig. 6).
Fig. 87.—Fantastic animal. National Library, Paris. Height 5¼ inches.
Drawn by Saint-Elme Gautier.
In this last composition we have a foretaste of the centaur.
Replace the lion by a horse and the likeness is complete. Even now
it is very great. At the first moment, before we have time to notice the
claws and divided toes, we seem to recognize the fabulous animal of
the Greeks upon the walls of an Assyrian palace.
Fig. 88.—Man-lion. British Museum. Height about 27 inches. Drawn by Saint-Elme
Gautier.
Another composite animal familiar to the imaginations both of
Greeks and Mesopotamians was the winged horse, the Hellenic
Pegasus (Fig. 89). The example we have chosen is full of grace and
nobility. We feel that the wings have given additional lightness and
almost a real capacity for leaving the ground.
Fig. 89.—Winged horse. From Layard.

Fig. 90.—Griffins seizing a goat. From Layard.


The whole of the fabulous tribe of griffins, by which we mean an
animal with the body of a lion or panther and the wings and head of
a bird of prey, is richly represented in Assyrian art. The griffin recurs
continually in the embroidery of the royal robes of Assurnazirpal (Fig.
90). The bird with a human head, the prototype of the Greek harpies
and sirens, is also to be frequently met with. We find it introduced in
those applied pieces which, after being cast and finished with the
burin, were used by bronze workers in the decoration of vases of
beaten metal. The diameters of the vases may easily be calculated
from the inner curve of the applied plaques;[197] the latter were used
to strengthen the vessels at the points where the movable handles,
like those of a modern bucket, were attached. These handles were
hooked to a ring or fastened to the back of the figure on the plaque.
[198] The head of the figure gave something to catch hold of when
the vessel was upon the table, with its handle down. The form in
question (see Fig. 91) was chosen by the artist on account of its
fitness for the work to be done; the tail and wings embrace the
swelling sides very happily; but yet it would never have been so
employed had it not belonged to the ordinary repertory of the
ornamentist.
Of all these types the only one that does not seem to have been
invented by those who made use of it is that of the winged sphinxes
used as supports in the palace of Esarhaddon (Vol. I., Fig. 85). The
human-headed lion is certainly found long before, but it is not until
the later reigns that he takes the couchant attitude and something of
the physiognomy of the Egyptian sphinx.
Fig. 91.—Human-headed bird. From De Longperier. One-third
of the actual size.
Under the Sargonids communication with Egypt became so
frequent that certain motives from the Nile valley were introduced
into the Assyrian system of ornament, but the part they played was
always a subordinate one. In creations such as those we have just
been studying Chaldæa and Assyria certainly displayed more
inventive power than was ever shown by Egypt. Speaking broadly,
there was no possible combination they did not attempt. It was from
Chaldæo-Assyrian artists that Syria, Judæa, and Phœnicia, as well
as Asia Minor, borrowed their imaginary animals; and, thanks to
these middle-men, it was also to the artists of the double valley that
the early ceramists and modellers of Greece owed not a few of the
motives they transmitted to the great periods of classic art, and,
through the latter, to the art of the Renaissance and of our own day.

§ 5. Chaldæan Sculpture.

So far we have made no distinction between Chaldæan and


Assyrian sculpture. They made, in fact, but one art. In both countries
we find the same themes and the same treatment—the same way of
looking at nature and the same conventional methods of interpreting
it. The common characteristics are numerous enough to justify us in
attributing to one and the same school the works produced both in
the southern and northern provinces. If we take them en bloc, and
put them side by side with the productions of any other great nation
of antiquity, we shall be at once struck by the close resemblance
between all the monuments from the valley of the Tigris and
Euphrates, whether they come from Sirtella or Babylon, Calah or
Nineveh. The connoisseur can point out a Mesopotamian creation at
a glance, mingled with works from Egypt, Phœnicia, or Greece
though it may be. In order to define the Chaldæo-Assyrian style, he
may take the first object that comes to hand, without caring much
whether it come from the upper country or the neighbourhood of the
Persian Gulf.
And yet between those cities of primitive Chaldæa that almost
rivalled Memphis in age, and the towns of Assyria which only
commenced to flourish in centuries that we may almost call modern,
it is impossible that the spirit of the plastic arts and their executive
processes can have remained without change. Between the earliest
and the latest monuments, between the images of Gudea and those
of Assurbanipal, there are, at least, shades of difference. It is certain
that the old Chaldæan art and the art of Assyria were not two
different arts, but they were two successive movements of the same
art—two phases in its development. We have still to distinguish
between these two phases by studying, one after the other, the
history of Chaldæan and that of Assyrian sculpture.
In the course of this study, and especially in the case of the older
civilization, we shall encounter many gaps. The monuments are few,
and, even of those that we have, many are not a little embarrassing.
They are often uninscribed and we are then without even the help
afforded by the language and the style of the character in fixing a
date. Fortunately this is not always the case; there are often
indications that enable us to form certain groups, and, if not to assign
absolute dates, at least to determine their relative places in a
chronological series.
Of all these groups the best established and almost the only ones
that can be used as the heads of series are those whose elements
have been furnished by the explorations undertaken by M. de
Sarzec, French vice-consul at Bassorah, at Tello, upon the site of a
town which we shall follow the majority of Assyriologists in calling
Sirtella. We have written the history of these excavations elsewhere;
we have explained how greatly they do honour to the artistic spirit,
the perseverance, and the energy of M. de Sarzec;[199] we have
given the history of the negotiations and of the vote in Parliament
which led to the acquisition by the Louvre of all the objects
discovered. It will be sufficient to say here that the works began in
the winter of 1876 and came to an end in 1881, and that the
purchase of M. de Sarzec’s collection took place in the latter year,
under the administration of M. Jules Ferry.
The name of Tello, which has become famous so suddenly, is to
be found on no map of Asia to which we have access. The place
thus designated by the Arabs in consequence of the numerous
mounds, or tells, that are sprinkled about, is situated quite in the
desert, on the left bank of the Shat-el-Haï, above Chatra and below
Saïd-Hassan, which are on the other side of the channel, and about
an hour and a quarter’s march to the east.[200]
This site seems to have been inhabited down to the very last
days of antiquity, so that monuments have been found there of all
ages; for the moment, however, we are only concerned with those
that belong to the early Chaldæan monarchy. Among these there are
some that date from the very beginning of Chaldæan civilization.
This we know not only from their style; arguments based on such
evidence alone might leave room for doubt; some might even
contend that the development of art did not proceed equally over the
whole of that extensive country; it might be asserted that here and
there it was in a far less advanced state than at other centres. The
age of these monuments is fixed by much less debateable signs,
namely, by the character of the symbols of which their inscribed texts
are composed (see Vol I., Fig. 2, and below, Fig. 92).
Fig. 92.—Inscription engraved on one of the seated Chaldæan statues. Louvre.

We have already explained[201] that in the monuments from


Sirtella these symbols were not all wedges, or arrow-heads, whose
exclusive use did not commence until afterwards; we have shown
how their original ideographic nature is still to be traced in many
characters. Compare the inscription here figured with those on our
Assyrian monuments. Put it side by side with the narrative that runs
across all the reliefs of Assurnazirpal at Nimroud (Vol. I., Fig. 4, and,
above, Fig. 64): you will see at once what a profound change has
taken place and how many centuries must have intervened between
such different ways of employing the same alphabet. At Tello the
material was less kindly; it was not, as in Assyria, limestone or
gypsum; it was a diorite or dolerite as stubborn as the hardest rocks
of Egypt.[202] The widely-spaced characters are none the less
distinct; their cutting is, in fact, marvellous in its decision and
clearness. We feel that the scribe traced each letter with much the
same care and respect as he would have shown in performing a
religious rite. In the eyes of the people who saw these complicated
symbols grow under the chisel, writing still had a beauty of its own as
well as a mysterious prestige; it was only legible by the initiated, and
they were few in number; it was admired for itself, for the power it
possessed of representing the facts of nature and the thoughts of
mankind; it was a precious, almost a magic, secret. By the time that
the palaces of the Assyrian monarchs began to be raised on the
banks of the Tigris it was no longer so; writing had gone on for so
many centuries that people had become thoroughly accustomed to it
and to its merits; all that one desired, when he took the chisel in
hand, was to be understood. The text in which Assurnazirpal
celebrates the erection of his palace and claims for it the protection
of the great gods of Assyria, is written in very small, closely-set
characters, engraved by a skilful and rapid hand in the soft and
kindly stone; the inequalities of the surface, the details of the
sculptures and the shadows they cast, make a letter difficult to read
here and there. Nowhere, neither here nor in any other of the great
Assyrian inscriptions, do we find the signs of care, the look of simple
and serious sincerity, that distinguishes the ancient writing of
Chaldæa. At Calah and Nineveh we have before us the work of a
society already far advanced, a society which lives in the past and
makes use, with mere mechanical skill, of the processes created and
brought to a first perfection many centuries before.
Of all the monuments found at Tello, the oldest, apparently, is a
great stele of white stone, both sides of which are covered with bas-
reliefs and inscriptions. Unfortunately it had been broken into
numerous pieces, and, as these have not all been recovered, it is
impossible to restore it entirely. The style of its writing seems the
farthest removed from the form into which it finally developed, and its
symbols seem to be nearer their original imitativeness than
anywhere else. “Inexperience is everywhere to be recognized in the
drawing of the figures; eyes are almost triangular and ears roughly
blocked out; the aquiline type of nose is but a continuation of the line
of the forehead, into which it blends; the Semitic profile is more
strongly marked than in the monuments of the following age.”[203]
Fig. 93.—Fragment of a stele; from Tello. Height 1
foot. Louvre.
Drawn by Saint-Elme Gautier.
The bas-reliefs represent strange scenes of war, of carnage, of
burial. Here we find corpses arranged in line so that the head of one
is touching the feet of his neighbour (Fig. 93); they look as if they
were piled one above another, but this, we believe, is an illusion due
to want of skill on the part of the artist. He puts objects one above
another on the field of his relief which, in reality, were laid side by
side. We must imagine these corpses spread over the surface of the
ground and covered with earth. If the sculptor had introduced the soil
above them, the corpses would have been invisible; so he has left it
out. The two figures on the left, who mount an inclined plane[204]
with baskets on their heads, what are they carrying? Offerings to be
placed on the summit of the sepulchre? or earth to raise the tumulus
to a greater height? We prefer the latter suggestion. When earth or
rubbish has to be removed in the modern East, when excavations
are made, for instance, the work is set about in the fashion here
commemorated; the action of these two figures seems, moreover, to
indicate that the weight they are carrying is greater than a basket full
of cakes, fruits, and other things of that kind would account for.
If on this fragment we have a representation of the honours paid
by the people of Sirtella to companions slain in battle, another
compartment of the same relief shows us the lot reserved by the
hate and vengeance of the victor for the corpses of his enemies (Fig.
94). Birds of prey are tearing them limb from limb on the place where
they fell. In their beaks and claws they held the heads, hands, and
arms of dismembered bodies. The savagery of all this suggests a
remote epoch, when civilization had done little to soften original
brutality.
A last fragment belongs to another composition (Fig. 95). It
comes from a relief showing either the departure of an army for the
field or its triumphal return. Very little is left, but that little is
significant;—a hand holding one of those military standards whose
use by the Assyrians we have already noticed (see above, Fig. 46),
and the head of a personage, perhaps the king, walking in the
procession; and that is all. The head-covering of the latter individual
seems to be a kind of feather crown with a metal or ivory aigrette or
cockade in the centre of one side, reminding us in its shape of the
head of one of the great Assyrian bulls; it would seem to be a symbol
of strength and victory.
Fig. 94.—Fragment of a stele; from Tello. Height 9¾ inches.
Louvre.
Drawn by Saint-Elme Gautier.
In the monograph now under preparation by MM. de Sarzec and
Heuzey a description of several smaller and still more fragmentary
pieces of the same monument will be found. There is one of which
the subject may still be traced. We have been prevented from
reproducing it by its bad condition. It again shows a battle field. Two
rows of corpses are stretched upon the ground; behind them are
several standing figures. We may thus re-establish with but little
room for mistake the whole economy of the composition. It was
made to commemorate some military expedition in which the prince
who reigned at Sirtella was successful. We do not know whether the
fight itself was represented or not, but we have before our eyes the
consequences of victory. One picture shows the insults inflicted upon
the lifeless bodies of the hated enemy; two more celebrate the care
taken by the victors of their dead and the honours rendered to their
memory; finally the march of the successful army is portrayed. We
have here, then, a well thought-out combination, a serious effort to
seize and figure the different moments in a complicated action. The
execution is, however, of singular awkwardness. The first halting
experiments of the Chaldæan chisel, what we may call the primitive
art of Chaldæa, is preserved for us in the fragments of this great
stele.[205]

Fig. 95.—Fragment of a stele; from Tello. About one-third


of the original size. Louvre.
Drawn by Saint-Elme Gautier.
A second and still more curious group of monuments is
composed of eight statues of different sizes with inscriptions of
Gudea, and of a ninth on which occurs a name read Ourbaou by
some and Likbagas by others.[206] It is the smallest of all those
exhibited at the Louvre. All these figures are broken at the junction of
the neck with the body.[207] We may put beside them two heads
whose proportions are about the same as theirs, which were found,

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