Chapter III: Part 3

With the close of the Hyksos period there is no discontinuity in the forms of scarab-backs commonly represented, but there is a marked incoming of new motives. Fig. 70 well shows the survival in the early Eighteenth Dynasty of the plain-bodied scarab which we have seen surviving throughout the earlier periods. Marks hitherto naturalistic are seen to be becoming conventional or decorative, but the form both in outline and in section is well preserved. In fig. 71, however, there is seen a new type, characterised by the oval base, the curving of the lines separating the _prothorax_ from the body, and a superiority of technique evidenced both by symmetry and firm cutting. Fig. 72 illustrates a development of this tendency in a highly-finished and decorative specimen, in which ornamental feeling now predominates for the first time over the naturalistic. The support of the thread-hole survives in this instance in the decoration, while the legs overspread upon a broader margin to the base. The date of this example is Amenhetep I. But the typical form of the middle Eighteenth Dynasty is illustrated by the example shown in fig. 73, which is dated by the name of Hatshepsut. The head and back are well shaped in the section, while the _clypeus_ and head are clearly and exquisitely cut. The _prothorax_ is rounded at the base, while in the forepart of the _elytra_ a small notch is indicated in the wing case on each side. The legs are sometimes well modelled, at other times indicated only in outline. A variation is illustrated in fig. 74, which dates from the time of Amenhetep III.

[Sidenote: The Nineteenth Dynasty.]

With the advent of the Nineteenth Dynasty the tendency to enlarge the base, and the spreading legs upon it and around the scarab, becomes typical of the period, as illustrated in figs. 75, 76. Another numerous class is of pottery, glazed as before, in which the head is elongated while the _prothorax_ and _elytra_ are not outlined. A downward notch on either side of the forepart of the wing cases, however, indicates the separation of the _prothorax_ from the body. The legs stand high, but project only a little (fig. 77). During the reign of Rameses the Great an interesting decorative motive is introduced in a few examples, of which figs. 78, 79 are specimens of interest. The former, in the Amherst Collection, is of ivory, finely cut. Upon the base is the device of Rameses in his chariot, while upon the back is the outline of the beetle, filled in with his cartouche and emblems. During the same period the human head upon the scarab body makes its reappearance as a device for decoration.

[Sidenote: The Ethiopian dominion.]

With the Ethiopian dominion a ram’s head (the emblem of Amen-ra) frequently is found upon the beetle body (fig. 80); while sometimes, as shown in fig. 81, the body of the scarab is replaced by the familiar Hathor head with uraei on either side.

[Sidenote: The subjects engraved on scarab-seals.]

The subjects engraved on Egyptian scarab-seals may be divided into several well-defined groups. Firstly, there are those which bear hieroglyphic inscriptions. Secondly, there are those which bear figures of men, animals, or flowers; and thirdly, those which bear geometrical designs, coil and rope patterns, etc.

[Sidenote: I. Hieroglyphic inscriptions.]

For the purposes of study the first group may be subdivided into: (1) those which are inscribed with the names of kings and other royal personages; (2) those which bear the names of officials and private people; (3) those which have titles without names; (4) those which represent the names or figures of deities, and (5) those which bear good wishes, mottoes, and magic formulae.

[Sidenote: (1) Royal names.]

The largest class of these objects bear the names and titles of the Egyptian kings; they are consequently most valuable for the illustrations they afford of Egyptian history: some of these names being scarcely, if at all, known except from these sources. The information they convey is, of course, usually very laconic, but sometimes the names are coupled with some facts connected with them, such as that the king is the son of a certain prince (Pl. X, 2), or that he is born of a queen (Pl. X, 3), or that he is beloved of some god (Pl. XXX, 22), or that he has conquered the foreigners (Pl. XXVIII, 10).

[Sidenote: (2) Private names.]

Scarab-seals bearing seals of officials and private persons form the second largest class. They usually give one or more titles of the official, together with the personal name. The earliest example known is one in the Amherst Collection, bearing the name of the “Mayor Tahutihetep,” from a tomb at El Bersheh, and the date of it is Usertsen II (Pl. XI, 15). They were common during the late Twelfth Dynasty and early intermediate period; they occur fairly often during the first half of the Eighteenth Dynasty, but are rarely found after that date. Frequently these private scarabs are decorated with a scroll pattern or other ornament, often very beautifully executed.

[Sidenote: (3) Titles.]

A very small number bear titles without personal names, such as “the courtier” (Pl. XLI, 20), “the governor of the royal city” (Pl. XLI, 22), “the priest,” and “the mayor.” These are all of a late date (Twenty-sixth Dynasty), and are very rare.

[Sidenote: (4) Names or figures of deities.]

Names or figures of deities engraved on scarabs are common, but they are mostly of the principal gods and goddesses of Egypt, such as Amen, Amen-Ra (Pl. XLI, 18), Ptah (Pl. XLI, 13), Khensu, Isis, Hathor (Pl. XLI, 5), Mut, Horus (Pl. XLI, 10), and Set (Pl. XLI, 15). These date from the beginning of the Eighteenth onwards to the Twenty-sixth Dynasty.

[Sidenote: (5) Good wishes, mottoes, and magic formulae.]

Scarabs bearing good wishes, mottoes, and magic formulae are numerous. Some of them not only give the good wishes, but even the names of the persons from whom they emanated and to whom they were sent. Thus the inscription on one in the Petrie Collection reads: “May Ptah give a Happy New Year, from the Prince Shashanq to his mother Ka-ra-ma-ma” (Pl. XL, 8). Others give simply the words, “A Happy New Year” (Pl. XL, 2), or “May Bast give a Happy New Year” (Pl. XL, 3). Some read, “If Amen is behind, there is no fear” (Pl. XXXIX, 27), while a little plaque in the Hood Collection says, “I am true of heart” (Pl. XL, 21).

[Sidenote: II. Figures of men and animals, etc.]

Many scarab-seals bear the figures of men and animals, the principal animals figured being the lion, bull, cynocephalus, horse, and gazelle. Birds are also often engraved, the hawk, the emblem of Horus, being the commonest. Serpents are very common, and we also occasionally find combinations of serpents with animals, sphinxes, griffons, and sometimes beetles and locusts (see Pl. XXV). Flowers, such as the lotus, are frequently found engraved on these seals.

Hunting scenes on scarab-seals appear for the first time during the Hyksos period, and a beautifully cut specimen of this date is in the Ashmolean Museum at Oxford (Pl. XXV, 26). It represents a king clad in a striped loin-cloth with fringed edge, and wearing a curiously-shaped head-dress. Armed with a bow and arrows, he hunts three ibex-gazelles and a lion among bushes of a desert wady. To a later period, probably not earlier than the Nineteenth Dynasty, belong the common hunt scarabs of the types figured in Pl. XLII, 33-39. The first and rarest type (Pl. XLII, 33) shows a hunter with lions and cheetahs chasing a gazelle. The second and commonest type represents an archer hunting the lion and other desert animals (Pl. XLII, 35). The third type is more elaborate, and depicts the hunter riding in a chariot drawn by one or more horses (Pl. XLII, 37-39), while on other scarabs we sometimes see the huntsman overtaken by a lion, and lying flat on the ground, apparently slain (Pl. XLII, 34). The cutting of these Nineteenth Dynasty hunt scarabs is generally deep, and the subject is always more or less coarsely rendered: few specimens bear any trace of glazing, and when found it is always of an inferior kind, which has turned brown.

[Sidenote: Coil and rope patterns.]

Scarabs with ornamental devices, such as coils and twisted rope patterns engraved upon them, appear first about the reign of Usertsen I, and continued in use to the middle of the Eighteenth Dynasty, after which period they rarely occur. The date of any single specimen may generally be determined by the form of the back, but the glazing and general style of cutting is also important in this connection. Specimens of the late Twelfth and early Thirteenth Dynasties are often fine examples of ornamental art: they are generally designed with much care, and executed with wonderful minuteness and delicacy of touch. Finely worked specimens are also found of the time of Queen Hatshepsut and Thothmes III. A representative series of coil and rope-pattern scarabs is given in Pls. XVIII and XIX. The rope-patterns figured in Pl. XIX, 1-3, are of the Hyksos period, while those on Pl. XVIII, 1-15, 18, range in date from the Twelfth to the Eighteenth Dynasties. The coil-patterns given in Pl. XIX, 4, 5, 9, are certainly of the Hyksos period, while the remainder of the coil patterns are mainly of the late Twelfth and Eighteenth Dynasties. Often the continuous loop coil was used to ornament the scarabs of kings and officials. The earliest example, indeed the earliest example of any coil-pattern in Egypt, is found on a scarab of Usertsen I, most exquisitely worked and fully developed (fig. 82).

For a long time past it has been thought that the spiral as a motive in decoration originated in the Nile Valley, and much misconception seems to prevail among archaeologists as to its occurrence in Egypt. Prof. Petrie says[114] that its earliest use in the country was for the decoration of scarabs, and he would trace the spiral motive back as far as the Fifth Dynasty. The single scarab that he instances, it is true, bears the prenomen of Dad-ka-Ra (Assa), but there is not the slightest reason to make one believe that this particular specimen is contemporaneous with the king whose name it bears; the whole style of it, on the contrary, clearly shows that it belongs to no earlier a date than the Eighteenth Dynasty. Prof. Petrie also attributes a number of scarabs bearing coil, hook and link ornamentation to the Sixth and Eighth Dynasties, but these have been conclusively shown by Fraser[115] and Griffith[116] to be in reality _post_ rather than _pre_ Twelfth Dynasty. The fact is that the spiral has not yet been found on Egyptian monuments of an older date than the reign of Usertsen I. It was then used as a motive for decorating a ceiling in the tomb of a chieftain at Assiut.[117] Employed architecturally it is not found again until the beginning of the Eighteenth Dynasty, when it was perhaps the most frequent motive for ceiling decorations in Theban tombs. In these tombs it is generally coloured yellow, to represent gold, and it is highly probable that the ornament itself originated in metal wire-work.[118]

At the same time as we find it occurring at Assiut, we also find the spiral used to decorate a scarab bearing the prenomen of Usertsen I (fig. 82). On this specimen the ornament is cut with very great care and regularity, indicating that the design was “a novelty, which had not yet become stereotyped[119] and reproduced as a matter of course.” The same exquisite workmanship is found on some scarabs bearing private names of the time of Amenemhat III or a little later; and here the continuous coil is combined with the lotus in a most beautiful design—a continuous coil, with flowers and buds in the spaces (Pl. XIV, figs. 21-26). It is difficult to believe that such a design sprang into being fully developed; but nothing has yet been found in Egypt at all like it of a period anterior to the Twelfth Dynasty; we must therefore search for the origin and development of the spiral motive in ornament elsewhere than in the Nile Valley. We do not yet know sufficiently the history of the Delta to say definitely that it did not originate there, but the probabilities are that we should look for its earliest employment and development outside the realm of Egypt.[120] However that may be, the spiral was one of the most important of the motives of the decorative art of the ancient world. From very ancient times it was largely used by the peoples of Western Asia and the Eastern Mediterranean, and in “the wake of early commerce it was spread afield to the Danubian basin, and thence in turn by the valley of the Elbe to the Amber coast of the North Sea; there to supply the Scandinavian Bronze Age population with their leading decorative designs. Adopted by the Celtic tribes in the Central European area, it took at a somewhat later date a westerly turn, reached Britain with the invading Belgae, and finally survived in Irish art.”[121]

[Sidenote: Material. Hard stones, obsidian, etc.]

Scarabs are made of all kinds of material, from the hardest obsidian and amethyst, to soft steatite and even wood. In all ages they were made of hard stones. Obsidian, spotted diorite, beryl, white quartz, hematite, amethyst, serpentine, green and red jasper, as well as red carnelians, lapis lazuli, and turquoise were all in use from the end of the Twelfth Dynasty onwards to the Twenty-sixth. Rarely during the earlier periods were the bases of the hardest stone specimens engraved; they were usually covered with a gold plate, upon which the device or inscription was incised.

[Sidenote: Gold, silver, etc.]

Metal scarabs are very rare: a few of gold, and two or three of silver are known of the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Dynasties, while about a dozen examples of bronze, of the Nineteenth and Twentieth Dynasties, are preserved in our museums.

[Sidenote: Glass and cyanus.]

At the middle of the Eighteenth Dynasty glass first appears, and of the reigns of the Amenheteps III and IV a number of seals have been found of a beautiful semitransparent deep blue glass. Of the late Eighteenth Dynasty a few specimens are known of cyanus, an alkaline silicate coloured a deep blue with carbonate of copper, and this material was used in increasing quantity till the Twenty-sixth Dynasty.

[Sidenote: Schist and steatite.]

Besides the hard stones enumerated above, shelly-limestone, schist, and steatite were also employed, and a few scarabs are known that were made of ivory. Steatite (or soapstone) was used in the manufacture of scarabs from the Twelfth to the Twentieth Dynasties, and by far the greater number of specimens are made of this material. It is a silicate of magnesium, soft, easily cut, and at the same time its superior compactness secures it from being readily broken or injured, and it is also capable of receiving a higher finish and much sharper impression of the subject than porcelain.

[Sidenote: The Glazes.]

The steatite scarabs were nearly always glazed, and the glazing often helps to indicate the date of a specimen. Only by a careful study of a large number of specimens can the eye be accustomed to differentiate between the varieties of glazing used at different periods. A very fine blue glaze of excellent quality is characteristic of the Twelfth Dynasty, and green glaze was also often used at this period. Many shades of blue and green glaze of very hard quality are found on the specimens of the Thirteenth Dynasty, and the few Hyksos scarabs that yet retain their colour show that a green glaze of a poorer quality was used at that period. The characteristic glazes of the early Eighteenth Dynasty are green, of a slightly greyish tint, generally of a fine surface, while those of the latter half of the dynasty, though coarser in quality, are often very brilliant in colour, and show a variety of tints ranging through all the shades of blue and green. Violet glaze was also employed at this period. The glazes of the Nineteenth Dynasty are often poor in quality, and generally of a dark yellowish-green colour, though sometimes blue and violet. The colour commonest during the Twentieth and later period are blue of various shades. It should be remarked here that the greatest number of scarabs are brown or white: the brown ones were invariably coloured green, and the white specimens blue.

4. MISCELLANEOUS FORMS OF SEALS.

[Sidenote: Miscellaneous forms.]

Besides scarabaei, other forms of seals are met with in Egypt. Many of them have little models of men or animals on the back, as human-heads, symbolic eyes, hippopotami, lions, hedgehogs, ducks, fish, frogs, flies, crocodiles; while not a few are shaped like cowries.

A large number are also cut in geometrical forms, tablet-shaped, squares, rectangles, ovals, cubes, and cones. Like the scarabs, they are all pierced, through their long axis or diameter, with a narrow cylindrical hole, and were similarly mounted.

[Sidenote: Animals as devices.]

The specimen illustrated in fig. 83, now in the MacGregor Collection, bears a private name upon the base. The material is steatite, beautifully carved. The figure is that of a male, squatting in the familiar attitude, his hands upon his knees, and wearing a full wig. The date is late in the Twelfth Dynasty. Fig. 84 is another illustration of the same motive, dating from the Eighteenth Dynasty.

Animal forms are illustrated in the figs. 85, 86, 87, 88, 89. The first represents a naturalistic group, a cow suckling its calf, exquisitely cut in steatite. It is in the collection of Captain Timmins in Cairo. The design upon the base is analogous in its symmetry and the devices employed to the steatite stamp, fig. 94, in the same collection, which probably dates from about the Eleventh Dynasty. The two stamps, figs. 86 and 87, are very important, one of them being dated by the cartouche of Mentuhetep of the Eleventh Dynasty, the other by its analogy, and by the device of a running figure in line frequently employed upon the button-seals (fig. 42, and _cf._ fig. 28). Hornets are employed upon the Karnak three-sided seal, fig. 86, which is probably of earlier date, about the close of the Sixth Dynasty. A further example of this [Sidenote: Miscellaneous devices.] character, being a ram with horns, is in the MacGregor Collection: upon the base is an interesting pattern in coils, dating probably from the end of the Twelfth Dynasty. A great number of seals with cats (fig. 88), hedgehogs, hippopotami (fig. 89), and fish (fig. 90), date from the time of Thothmes III in the Eighteenth Dynasty, while those with ducks (figs. 91, 92), frogs, and flies, seem to be slightly later, dating from the reign of Amenhetep III.

A number of large seals are oval in form; one of these, with a device of animals incised upon the back, shown in fig. 93, bears upon the base the blundered cartouche of Amenemhat III. One of rectangular form (fig. 94) is rather of the nature of a stamp, being without decoration upon the back other than the necessary suspension hole in the attachment, while upon the base is the device previously described as belonging to the period which precedes the Middle Kingdom—between the Sixth and Eleventh Dynasties, from its analogy to the button-seals of that time. Other stamps are illustrated in figs. 95 and 96, having oval bases. They date from the Seventeenth Dynasty, bearing the names of Seqen-en-ra and Se-Amen. Another stamp (fig. 97) of larger size, has a simple handle down the middle of the back. The device in this case represents a number of captives or votives below the emblem of Anubis. This class of stamp, used generally for the sealing up of tomb-doors, as in the case of the tomb of Thothmes IV at Thebes, seems to date from the Eighteenth Dynasty. Fig. 98 represents another common form of the same period, itself dating to the reign of the emblem upon it, Thothmes III. A less usual class, dating from the Twelfth Dynasty, is represented in fig. 99. The back in this instance is plain, the form of the stamp resembling a slice from a sphere, with the device upon the plane face. A hole pierces the thickness. Figs. 100 and 101, represent other objects of this class, which from its Aegean analogies is of peculiar importance. The former specimen is dated, from an inscription on its back, to the reign of Usertsen III; the coil device is employed in each case. Two interesting examples are shown in figs. 102 and 103, the one being of the Eighteenth Dynasty, from its cutting and its glaze, the other of the Nineteenth Dynasty, from the cartouche of Rameses II incised upon it. A late example is that shown in fig. 104, and is a common type of the period of the Saïte renaissance in the Twenty-sixth Dynasty. The inscription gives the name of Tahuti son of Aahmes, chief of the scribes of the temple. It is of pottery, glazed green, and is in the Collection of Captain Timmins.

Two typical stamps of the Thirtieth Dynasty, one in bronze, the other in pottery, are pictured in figs. 105 and 106. They are both without device upon the plain handle of suspension. The one fig. 105 bears the name of the Royal son Za-hapi-amen; the other bears the name of king Kheper-ka-Ra, otherwise Nekht-neb-ef, with whom the list of Egypt’s kings comes to a close.

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5. SIGNET-RINGS.

[Sidenote: Signet-rings.]

The signet-ring was called in Egyptian [Egyptian **] _zebat_ (var. [Egyptian **], pl. [Egyptian **] Coptic [Coptic **] it consisted of (_a_) a perforated bezel, the part that bears the inscription or device, and (_b_) a hoop or wire which runs through the bezel and round the inside of the finger. The bezel was generally a separate piece of stone or metal, and when that was the case, it was generally encircled by a metal band (_funda_) and pierced so that it formed a swivel ring.

[Sidenote: Their history.]

The earliest examples that we know of are not older than the middle of the Twelfth Dynasty, but from that period onwards they are fairly common in Egypt. A number were found by M. de Morgan, at Dahshûr, of the date of Usertsen III to Amenemhat III, and these are all of one type: a scarab threaded on a piece of gold wire, the ends of which are twisted round several times on the back of the hoop (fig. 107). At a somewhat later period we find the gold wire thickened in the middle to lend additional strength, and the two ends thrust into the perforation of the scarab. The specimen illustrated (fig. 108) dates from the Thirteenth Dynasty. A second type of this period is shown in fig. 109. Here the scarab is mounted in a gold _funda_ and the perforation is threaded by a wire, the ends of which are wound tightly round the hoop, which is made of a separate piece of metal. The same form survives during the Hyksos period (_see_ Pl. I, ring of King Apepŷ), and on to the end of the Eighteenth Dynasty (fig. 110, and the ring of Hor-em-heb, Pl. I). With the beginning of the Eighteenth Dynasty another form appears, that of a plain metal ring with the outer surface of the bezel flat and the inner curved (fig. 111). This form was rare during the earlier reigns of the dynasty, but common under Amenhetep III and Akhenaten (_see_ ring of Akhenaten, Pl. I), and it survives to the present day. At the time of Thothmes III, a ring consisting of a plain hoop beaten out into a lozenge shaped plate occurs (Pl. XXIX, 31), but it is a very rare form until after the Twentieth Dynasty. With the reign of Amenhetep III, pottery rings of all forms are found, and these are very common till the beginning of the Nineteenth Dynasty.

Pottery rings, with long bezels, as shown in figs. 112 and 113, appear first at the end of the Twentieth Dynasty, and continue on till the end of the Twenty-third. The examples of the Twenty-sixth Dynasty are of several forms, the commonest being the plain hoop beaten out into a rectangular or lozenge-shaped plate which bears the inscription. Other forms give the outer surface of the bezel flat and the inner curved, as in figs. 114 and 115: the one being a ring of a priest of Khufu, named Nefer-ab-ra; the other that of a priest of Tahuti, named Hor-se-ast. A rarer form is that illustrated in fig. 116, where the flat engraved plate is welded on to a plain hoop.

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DESCRIPTIONS

OF THE

SPECIMENS FIGURED IN THE PLATES.

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LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS.

The following abbreviations are used to denote the collections and works most frequently quoted in the descriptions of the Plates:—

Alnw. The Duke of Northumberland’s Collection at Alnwick
Castle, Northumberland.

Amh. Lord Amherst of Hackney’s Collection at Didlington
Hall, Norfolk.

Ashm. The Ashmolean Museum at Oxford.

Ath. The Athens Museum.

_A.Z._ _Zeitschrift für Ägyptische Sprache_, Berlin.

Benson Mr. E. F. Benson’s Collection, London.

Berl. The Egyptian Museum, Berlin.

B.M. The British Museum.

Bol. The Museo Civico, Bologna.

B.P. (Delhaes Coll.) Buda Pesth.

C.d.M. The Cabinet des Medailles, Paris.

C.M. The Cairo Museum.

Dat. G. Dattari’s Collection, Cairo.

Davis Mr. Theodore M. Davis’ Collection, Newport, Rhode
Island, U.S.A.

de M. _D._ M. de Morgan’s _Fouilles à Dahchour_.

Dres. The Dresden Museum.

Edw. The Edwards’ Collection, University College,
London.

Evans Col. John Evans’ Collection, London.

Fitzw. The Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge.

F._Sc._ Mr. G. W. Fraser’s book “_Scarabs_.”

Gibs. Mr. Gibson’s Collection, Liverpool.

Gdn. Mrs. Goodison’s Collection, Waterloo, near
Liverpool.

Gr. The late Dr. Grant’s Collection, Liverpool.

Green Mr. F. W. Green’s Collection, Tunbridge Wells.

Har. The Harrow School Museum, Harrow.

Herm. The Museum of the Ermitage, St. Petersburg.

Hood Mrs. Hood’s Collection, Nettleham Hall, Lincoln.

H-P. Mr. Hilton Price’s Collection, London.

L. The Egyptian Museum of the Louvre, Paris.

Leyd. The Leyden Museum.

Liv. The Liverpool Museum.

Luxor Specimens seen in Dealers’ shops at Luxor.

Mars. The Château Borelly Museum, Marseilles.

M. _B._ M. Maspero’s _Guide du visiteur au Musée de
Boulaq_.

M. _Cat. Ab._ Mariette’s _Catalogue général des Monuments
d’Abydos_.

_M.D._ Mariette’s _Monuments Divers_.

M-G. Mr. W. MacGregor’s Collection, Tamworth.

M. _Mast._ Mariette’s _Les Mastabas de l’Ancien Empire_.

Murch Mr. Chauncey Murch’s Collection, Luxor.

Myers The late Major Myers’ Collection, now in the Eton
College Museum, Eton.

Nash Mr. W. Nash’s Collection.

Newb. Scarabs in the possession of the writer.

N.Y. The Abbott Collection at New York.

Piers’ Coll. Mr. Piers’ Collection, New York.

P. Prof. Petrie’s Collection at University College,
London.

P. _I._ Prof. Petrie’s _Illahûn, Kahun and Gurob_.

P. _K._vProf. Petrie’s _Kahun, Gurob and Hawara_.
P. R. T. Prof. Petrie’s volumes on the Royal Tombs of
Abydos.

P. _Sc._ Prof. Petrie’s _Historical Scarabs_.

_P.S.B.A._ _Proceedings_ of the Society of Biblical
Archaeology.

S.K. The South Kensington Museum.

Thomp. Sir Herbert Thompson’s Collection, London.

Timmins’ Coll. Capt. C. Timmins’ Collection, Cairo.

T. The Turin Museum.

Vat. The Egyptian Museum of the Vatican, Rome.

Vien. The Vienna Museum.

v-B. Baron von Bissing’s Collection, Munich.

W. Mr. John Ward’s Collection, Belfast.

W. _S.B._ Mr. John Ward’s volume on _The Sacred Beetle_.

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PLATE I.

SOME ROYAL SIGNET-RINGS.

I. Signet-ring of Apepŷ I. In the possession of Mr. Theodore M. Davis.
The bezel is of green-glazed steatite, carved in the shape of a
scarabaeus-beetle with a human head, and mounted in a thin gold
funda. On the base of the bezel is engraved in intaglio, and within
a cartouche, the name of the “Good King Aauser-ra (Apepŷ I), giving
life.” The cartouche is surrounded by a continuous rope-pattern.
The hoop of the ring is of gold, and the bezel is secured to it by
means of a gold wire running longitudinally through the funda and
scarab, and coiled tightly round its two ends.

II. Signet-ring of Amenhetep II. In the Egyptian Museum of the Louvre.
The bezel is of solid gold, in the form of a rectangular plaque. On
one face are engraved, in intaglio, the titles and prenomen of
Amenhetep II: “The King of Upper and Lower Egypt, the Lord of the
Two Lands, Aa-kheperu-ra,” the cartouche being surmounted by two
cobras, and resting on the _nub_-sign. On the other face are the
titles: _Heru_, _ka nekht_, _user pehtet_, “the Horus and Mighty
Bull, strong in power.” The bezel is pierced longitudinally by a
narrow hole, and it is fixed to the hoop of the ring by means of a
rod running through it, and rivetted to the shoulders.

III. Signet-ring of Nefer-ka-ra (Psamtek II). In the possession of Mr.
Walter Nash. A plain hoop of gold, beaten out into a lozenge-shaped
plate, upon which is cut, in intaglio, the prenomen of Psamtek II.

IV. Signet-ring of Neferu-kheperu-ra Setep-en-ra (Akh-en-aten). In
the possession of Mr. Walter Nash. A hoop of silver, with massive
bezel, the inner surface of which is curved, and the outer flat,
with the prenomen of Akh-en-aten engraved upon it.

V. Signet-ring of Zeser-kheperu-ra Setep-en-ra (Hor-em-heb). In the
Egyptian Museum of the Louvre. This is the most remarkable specimen
of an ancient Egyptian signet-ring known. It is formed of a
quadrangular plaque and a thick hoop, swollen in the middle for
strength, both of solid gold; it weighs 125.50 grs. On one face of
the plaque is engraved, in intaglio, the prenomen of Hor-em-heb,
while on the other is a marching lion, emblem of royal power, and
the words _Neb Khepsh_, “Lord of Valiance,” above it. Upon the two
sides are delicately engraved: (1) a scorpion, and (2) a crocodile.
The bezel is pierced longitudinally through its centre, and secured
to the hoop by means of a thick gold wire, which threads the bezel,
and is coiled round the two ends of the hoop.

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PLATE II.

Scene representing “the Superintendent of the Seal” (_i.e._, the Chancellor) of King Tût-ankh-Amen, investing Prince Hûŷ with the Official Seal of the Governorship of Ethiopia. The inscription above and between the figures reads: “The giving of the Seal of the Royal Son by the Superintendent of the Seal, in order to make to flourish the office of the Royal Son of Ethiopia, Hûŷ; (his boundary) begins at Nekhen (Hieraconpolis) and (ends) at Kerŷ[122] (Gebel Barkal).” The ring and bezel are coloured yellow, to represent gold. From a painting in the tomb of Hûŷ at Kurnet Muraî, Thebes.

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PLATE III.

PRE-DYNASTIC CYLINDER SEALS.

1. Three animals in a desert wadŷ (?). M-G.

2-7. Black steatite cylinder-seals, bearing personal names written in
primitive hieroglyphic characters, each name being determined by
the seated figure of a man. These examples are all in the M-G.
Collection, except No. 3, which is in the Amh. Collection.

8 and 9. Black steatite cylinder-seals, bearing personal names (?),
written in primitive hieroglyphic characters, but without a seated
figure determinative. M-G.

10. A personal (?) name reading Asunut. Amh. A fine specimen in wood.

11-13. Three black steatite cylinder-seals, bearing inscriptions of
uncertain meaning. M-G.

14. A beautifully cut ivory cylinder-seal, bearing a personal name
reading Sheden. Murch.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

PLATE IV.

IMPRESSIONS OF EARLY CYLINDER-SEALS.[123]

1.* Birds, gazelles, and other desert animals, with traps for capturing
them. This sealing belongs to the pre-Dynastic group, but was found
in a First Dynasty tomb at Abydos. (P. _R.T._ II, xiv, 104.)

2.* “Aha,” the Horus-name of Menes, the founder of the First Egyptian
Dynasty. (P. _R.T._ II, xiv, 98.)

3. A black steatite cylinder-seal, bearing a hieroglyphic inscription of
uncertain meaning. M-G.

4. A personal name (?). Berl. 14594.

5. “The Royal Daughter, Meh-en-pet-tha.” v-B. (F. _Sc._ 1.)

6. A wooden cylinder-seal, bearing a hieroglyphic inscription of
uncertain meaning. M-G.

7.* “The King of Upper and Lower Egypt, Mer-pa-ba.” (P. _R.T._ I, xxvi,
60.) First Dynasty, found at Abydos.

8.* “Sekhem-ab,” the Horus-name of King Per-ab-sen. (P. _R.T._ II, 165.
See also _infra_, Nos. 12 and 13.)

9.* “Den,” the Horus-name of King Setuî. (P. _R.T._ I, xxii, 39.)

10.* “The Mayor of the Town of Se-ka.” (P. _R.T._ I, xxii, 32.)

11.* “The King of Upper and Lower Egypt, Khasekhemui.” (P. _R.T._ II,
xxxiii, 201.)

12.* “The King of Upper and Lower Egypt, Per-ab-sen.” (P. _R.T._ II,
xxii, 164.)

13.* “Sekhem-ab,” the Horus-name of King Per-ab-sen. (P. _R.T._ II, xxi,
164.)

14. A black steatite cylinder-seal, bearing a hieroglyphic inscription
of uncertain meaning. Gdn.

15. Fish in a stream. Berl. 15338. This seal should be classed in the
pre-Dynastic group.

16.* “The Mother of Royal Children, Ne-Maat-Hap.” (P. _R.T._ II, xxiv,
210; _cf._ also, Borchardt, Naville and Sethe, in _A.Z._ XXXVI, p.
142.)

------------------------------------------------------------------------

PLATE V.

CYLINDER-SEALS OF THE FOURTH
TO SIXTH DYNASTIES.

1. “Kha-ef-ra, (?) beloved of the Gods.” P.

2. “Men-kau-ra, beloved of the Gods and beloved of Hather.” P.

3. “The King of Upper and Lower Egypt, Men-kau-ra, beloved of the Gods
daily and of Hather-duat daily.” Evans. This cylinder-seal gives
the earliest known instance of the king’s title _Sa-Ra_, “Son of
Ra.”

4. “Men-kau-ra.” At the side of the cartouche is a seated figure of the
goddess Hather holding the _uas_-sceptre; before her is the word
_neter_ and the name of Men-kau-ra’s pyramid (?) Men-ab. Murch.

5. “Sahu-ra, beloved of the Gods,” and his Horus-name, Neb-khau. v-B.
(Fr. _Sc._ 12.)

6. “Sahu-ra, beloved of Hather, the beautiful Star and Mistress of the
Sycamore.” Fitzw.

7. “User-ka-ef, beloved of the Gods,” and the Horus-name of this king
_Ar-maat_. Found on the Island of Elephantine. _M.D._ 54 e.

8. “User-ka-ef, beloved of the Gods and beloved of Hather.” B.M. 16774.

9. “Nefer-ar-ka-ra, beloved of the Gods daily, and priest of Hather.” W.
_S.B._ XVI, 331.

10. “The Royal Favourite who executed the orders of his Lord the King of
Upper and Lower Egypt, Pepŷ (I), beloved of Anhur.” The inscription
also gives the Horus-name of Pepŷ: _Merŷ tauï_, and states that the
official for whom this cylinder was cut was “chief over the secret
things of the court,” and that “he made the favours of the court.”
B.M. 29061.

11. “The King of Upper and Lower Egypt, Merŷ-tauï (Pepŷ I), the Good
God, and Lord of the Two Lands,” with the Horus-name of Merŷ-tauï.
In the horizontal line at the bottom of the seal the king is said
to be “beloved of Sak, Lord of the Two Rats (?).” Like the specimen
No. 10, this is a seal of the “Royal Favourite, the Regulator of
the Festivals, he who executed the orders and made the favours of
the king,” his master. B.M. 5495

------------------------------------------------------------------------

PLATE VI.

CYLINDER-SEALS OF THE TWELFTH DYNASTY.

1. A steatite cylinder-seal, giving the prenomens of the six consecutive
kings of the Twelfth Dynasty:—

(1) Sehetep-ab-ra (Amenemhat I).

(2) Kheper-ka-ra (Usertsen I).

(3) Nub-kau-ra (Amenemhat II).

(4) Kha-kau-ra (Usertsen III).

(5) Kha-kheper-ra (Usertsen II).

(6) Ne-maat-ra (Amenemhat III). Brocklehurst Collection. (P.
_Sc._ 272.)

2. “Nub-kau-ra (Amenemhat II), beloved of Sebek, Lord of Ref-sam (?).”
B.M. 16408.

3. “Nub-kau-ra (Amenemhat II), beloved of Sebek, Lord of Ha.” C.M. 3657.

4. “Nub-kau-ra (Amenemhat II), beloved of Sebek, Lord of Semenu.” P.
_I._ VIII, 24.

5. “Usertsen, beloved of Sebek, Lord of Semenu.” Amh.

6. “Kha-kheper-ra (Usertsen II), beloved of Sebek, Lord of Re-sehui.”
M-G.

7. “Kha-kheper-ra (Usertsen II), beloved of Sebek, Lord of Semenu.” B.M.
3928.

8. “Kha-kheper-ra (Usertsen II) and Kha-kau-ra (Usertsen III).” P. _I._
VIII. 28.

9. “Kha-kau-ra (Usertsen III).” C.M. 3654.

10. The nomen of Usertsen and the prenomen (Ne-maat-ka) of Amenemhat
III. B.M. 16747.

11. “Kha-kau-ra (Usertsen III) and Ne-maat-ra (Amenemhat III).” P. _K._
X, 11.

12. “The Good God, Lord of the Two Lands, Ne-maat-ra (Amenemhat III).”
B.M. 16746.

13. “Ne-maat-ra (Amenemhat III), beloved of Sebek, Lord of Shediti.”
M-G.

14. “Ne-maat-ra (Amenemhat III), beloved of Sebek, Lord of Shediti.”
Amh. (formerly in the possession of Bonomi: _cf._ Sharpe, _Eg.
Insc._, II, p. 23).

15. “Usertsen and Ne-maat-ra (Amenemhat III).” M-G., said to have been
found at El Bersheh.

16. “Amenemhat, beloved of Sebek, Lord of Ḥent.” Davis.

17. “Amenemhat, beloved of Sebek, Lord of Ref-sam (?).” Amh.

18. “Amenemhat, beloved of Sebek, Lord of Aa-neferu (?).” Leyd. 663.

19. “The King of Upper and Lower Egypt, Ne-maat-ra (Amenemhat III), son
of Ra, Amenŷ, the Lord of the Two Lands, the Good God, Amenemhat.”
M-G.

20. “Amenemhat and the Royal Daughter A-ta-ka[-ŷt].” M-G. A-ta-Kayt was
a daughter of Usertsen II. (_A.Z._ XXXVII, 91.)

21. This cylinder-seal bears the full titles and name of Queen
Sebek-shedeti-neferu. B.M. 16581.

22. “The King of Upper and Lower Egypt, Maa-kheru-ra (Amenemhat IV),”
with the legend _fu qe es neb tem_, and “beloved of Hather,
Mistress of Re-aat (?).” M-G.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

PLATE VII.

CYLINDER-SEALS OF THE
TWELFTH TO SEVENTEENTH DYNASTIES.

1. “The Mayor of Het-kha-Usertsen and Superintendent of the Temple ...
Senba, justified.” Alnw. Het-kha-Usertsen was probably the pyramid
town of Usertsen II (Griffith, _K.P._, p. 58). Other mayors of this
locality are recorded in the tomb of Tehuti-hetep at El Bersheh
(Newberry, _El.B._ I., XXXIII); on a statue at Alnwick Castle
(Birch, _Cat. Alnw._, pp. 60-62), and on a scarab published on Pl.
XIII, 20 of the present work.

2. Cylinder-seal of a king with the Horus-name of Her-tep-tauï,
“Chieftain of the Two Lands,” and “beloved of Sebek, Lord of Sunu.”
Murch. This king certainly belongs to the beginning of the
Thirteenth Dynasty, but his personal name has not as yet been
fixed.

3. The full names and titles of king Amenenhat-senb-ef. Amh. This
beautiful cylinder-seal is of steatite, coated with a fine blue
glaze, and the hieroglyphs are very delicately cut. It was found at
Mohalla (Mualla), opposite Gebelên, and the monarch whose name it
records is otherwise unknown (_cf._ my note in _P.S.B.A._, XXI,
282).

4. “Sekhem-khu-tauï-ra, beloved of Sebek, Lord of Ref-sam (?).” B.M.
3663.

5. “The Good God, Uah-ab-ra (Aa-ab), beloved of Sebek, Lord of Sunu.”
Gr.

6. “The Good God, Se-bak(?)-ka-ra, beloved of Sebek, lord of Sunu.” Amh.

7. “The _Hek Khaskhet_, Ruler of the Mountains,” Khŷran (Khŷan). In the
possession of Signore Lanzone of Turin.

8. A cylinder-seal with decorative coil-pattern. It was found at Nubt
(Petrie, _Naqada_, LXXXI, 79), and belongs to the intermediate
period between the end of the Twelfth and the beginning of the
Eighteenth Dynasty.

9. Cylinder-seal, with interlacing coil-pattern. M-G. Of the early
Intermediate period.

10. “The _Hek nefer_, Good Ruler, Khŷan.” Athens.

11. Cylinder-seal, with human figures and cartouches with hieroglyphic
inscriptions of doubtful reading. P. Hyksos period.

12. A green glazed steatite cylinder-seal, bearing the legend
“Kheper-nub-ra,” the prenomen of Antef V. B.M. 30772. Late
Intermediate period.

13. “The Governor of the (Royal) City (_i.e._, Thebes) and Vezir,
Ankhu.” Figured in the Brit. Mus. _Add. MS._ 29816, f. 193. This
vezir lived under King Khenzer, of the Thirteenth Dynasty (_cf._ my
note in P.S.B.A. XXII, 64).

------------------------------------------------------------------------

PLATE VIII.

MISCELLANEOUS CYLINDER-SEALS.

1. Cylinder-seal, with figures of men and flowers, and a cartouche with
unreadable inscription. v-B. (Fr. _Sc._ 153.) Hyksos period.

2. “Zeser-ka-ra (Amen-hetep I).” B.M. 16579.

3. “Neb-maat-ra (Amen-hetep III) and Queen Thŷï” C.d.M.

4. “The Superintendent of the Garden of Amen, and Chief Steward of the
Queen [Hatshepsut], Sen-mut.” P. Sen-mut was the favourite minister
of Queen Hatshepsut, and the architect of the famous temple at Dêr
el Bahari. (For his biography, see my account of his life in Benson
and Gourlay’s _The Temple of Mut_, pp. 299-312, and a supplementary
note in the _P.S.B.A._ XXII, 63.)

5. “Zeser-ka-ra (Amen-hetep I).” P.

6. “Aa-kheperu-ra (Amen-hetep II),” with figures of Ptah and Khnem, and
a gazelle among bushes. Dat.

7. Cylinder-seal of Setŷ I, with titles. P.

8. “Sahu-ra,” with his Horus and Hor-nub names. In the possession of
Alan Joseph, Esq., of Cairo.

9. “Kha-ef-ra.” Berl.

10. “Kha-ef-ra,” with his Horus-name, _User-ab_. C.d.M.

11. “Nub-kau-ra (Amenemhat II),”[124] beloved of Sebek, Lord of Anu.”
Mr. Nahmann, Cairo.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

PLATE IX.

SCARABS BEARING ROYAL NAMES:
FOURTH TO TWELFTH DYNASTIES.

1-9. Scarabs bearing names of kings of the Ancient Kingdom:—

1. “Neb-ka-ra.” B.M. 23296.

2. “Khufu.” B.M. 22949.

3. “Khufu.” Gr.

4. “Kha-ef-ra.” Alnw.

5. “Kha-ef-ra.” M-G.

6. “Unas.” Amh.

7. “Merŷ-ra.” Luxor.

8. “Neb-kha-ra.” H-P. 166.

9. “Men-kau-ra.” Gr.

10-39. Scarabs bearing names of kings and other royal personages of the
Eleventh and Twelfth Dynasties.

10. “Se-ankh-ka-ra” (Mentuhetep [IV ?]). P. For this king’s
personal name, see a monument in the Cairo Museum (No. 31439).

11. “Se-hetep-ab-ra” (Amenemhat I). W. _S.B._ I, 215.

12. “Se-hetep-ab-ra-senb.” Mr. Nahmann, Cairo. The back of this
seal is of the button-type.

13. “Kheper-ka-ra” (Usertsen I). Gr. This scarab-seal has a back of
the “Yabek-her” type (_cf._ fig. 68, p. 73), with a lotus
flower engraved on the right wing.

14. “Kheper-ka-ra” (Usertsen I). M-G.

15. “Usertsen.” Luxor.

16. “Amenemhat.” P.

17. “Kheper-ka-ra” (Usertsen I). Amh.

18. “Kheper-ka-ra” (Usertsen I). Gr.

19. “Kha-kheper-ra” (Usertsen II). C.M.

20. “Kha-kheper-ra” (Usertsen II). Gr.

21. “Nub-ka-ra” (Amenemhat II). M-G.

22. “Kha-kau-ra” (Usertsen III). Davis.

23. “Kha-kheper-ra” (Usertsen II). M-G.

24. “Kha-kau-ra” (Usertsen III). C.M. Found at Dahshûr (_cf._ de M.
_D._ I, vi, 4).

25. “Ne-maat-ra” (Amenemhat III). Gr.

26. “Ne-maat-ra” (Amenemhat III). Ashm.

27. “Ne-maat-ra” (Amenemhat III), with titles. C.M. This scarab is
of lapis-lazuli, set in a gold funda, and was found at
Dahshûr, (de M. _D._ I, fig. 148.)

28. “Ne-maat-ra” (Amenemhat III). C.M. Of emerald stone, and found
at Dahshûr. (de M. _D._ I, fig. 149.)

29. “Ne-maat-ra” (Amenemhat III). Gr.

30. “The Royal Daughter, Merert.” C.M. Of lapis-lazuli, and found
at Dahshûr. (de M. _D._ I, fig. 147.)

31. “The Good God, Lord of two Lands, Nub-ka-ra, Usertsen.” M-G.
This scarab is perhaps a “late issue,” which might account for
the prenomen of Amenemhat II being joined to the nomen of an
Usertsen; or it may be a contemporary specimen, the two names
appearing being due to the co-regency of Amenemhat II and
Usertsen II.

32. “The Royal Wife who is joined to the Beauty of the White
Crown.” C.M. A queen’s scarab, found at Dahshûr. (de M. _D._
I, xx, 48 b.)

33. “The Royal Daughter, Sat-hather.” C.M. Found at Dahshûr. (de M.
_D._ I, fig. 153.)

34. “The Royal Daughter, Merŷt.” C.M. Found at Dahshûr. (de M. _D._
I, fig. 152.)

35. “The Hereditary Chieftainess, the Royal Princess,
Anket-nefret-uben.” v-B. (Fr. _Sc._ 75). Two other scarabs of
this princess are known, one in the v-B. Coll. (Fr. _Sc._ 76),
and the other in the Petrie Coll.

36. “Ne-maat-ra” (Amenemhat III), with titles. L. A similar
specimen is in the Petrie Coll.

37. “Ne-maat-ra” (Amenemhat III). Alnw.

38. “Maa-kheru-ra” (Amenemhat IV). L.

39. “The Hereditary Chieftainess, the Royal Princess, Nub-em-ant.”
v-B. (F. _Sc._ 80.)

------------------------------------------------------------------------

PLATE X.

SCARABS OF THE KINGS OF THE THIRTEENTH AND FOURTEENTH DYNASTIES.

1. “Sekhem-khu-taui-ra.” Murch.

2. “Sekem-se-uaz-taui-ra, Sebekhetep [II], made of the Divine Father
Mentuhetep.” C.M.

3. “Sekem-se-uaz-taui-ra, Sebekhetep [II], born of the Royal Mother
Auhet-abu.” B.M. 30506 (_cf._ _M.D._, 48 i).

4. “Kha-seshes-ra (Neferhetep), made of the Divine Father Ha-ank-ef.”
v-B. (Fr. _Sc._ 46.)

5. “Neferhetep, born of the Royal Mother Kema.” v-B.

6. “Kha-nefer-ra,” Sebekhetep [III]. Nash.

7. “Kha-nefer-ra,” Sebekhetep [III]. Gr.

8. “Kha-nefer-ra (Sebekhetep [III]), made of the Divine Father
Ha-ankh-ef.” C.M.

9. “Kha-nefer-ra (Sebekhetep [III]), born of the Royal Mother Kema.”
B.M. 3934.

10. “Kha-nefer-ra” (Sebekhetep [III]). H-P. 3693.

11. “Kha-nefer-ra” (Sebekhetep [III]). B.M. 25554.

12. “Kha-nefer-ra” (Sebekhetep [III]). L.

13. “Kha-nefer-ra (Sebekhetep [III]), combined with the prenomen of
Kha-ankh-ra (Sebekhetep [IV]).” Ashm.

14. “Kha-ka-ra.” Gr.

15. “Kha-ka-ra.” Amh.

16. “Kha-hetep-ra,” Sebekhetep [V. ] C.M. 3666 (_cf._ _M.D._ 48 p).

17. “Uah-ab-ra’ (Aa-ab).” P.

18 and 19. “Mer-nefer-ra, Aŷ.” Alnw. and C.M. 3668 (for the latter,
_cf._ _M.D._ 48 o).

20. “Mer-nefer-ra” (Aŷ.) Nash (_cf._ _M.D._ 48 q).

21. “Mer-hetep-ra, Ana.” L.

22. “Maa-ra, Sebekhetep [VI ?].” Gr.

23. “Maa-ra (Sebekhetep [VI ?]).” M-G.

24. “Sebek-em-sau-ef.” H-P. 187. This specimen is in dark green basalt,
with a gold covering, upon which the cartouche is incised.

25. “Dedui-ankh-ra” (Mentu-em-sau-ef). P.

26. “Dedui-ankh-ra” (Mentu-em-sau-ef). Murch.

27. “Sebek.” In the possession of Mr. A. H. Sayce. Bought at Luxor. (P.
_Sc._ 281.)

28. “Shens.” Grant Coll. Another specimen is in the B.M. 32392.

29. “Nefer-ded-ra” (Dedu-mes). v-B. (Fr. _Sc._ 62.) For the nomen of
this king, see a stone slab in the Cairo Museum, 20533.

30. “Nefer-ankh-ra.” Found at Defenneh. (Petrie, _Defenneh_, Pl. XLI,
57.)

------------------------------------------------------------------------

PLATE XI.

SCARABS OF OFFICIALS OF THE TWELFTH TO FOURTEENTH DYNASTIES.

1. “The Governor of the (Royal) City and Vezîr, Ptah-dedut-senb,
justified.” H-P. 3726. A clay impression of a somewhat similar seal
(of the Vezîr Ŷ-meru) was found by Prof. Petrie at Abydos.

2. “The Governor of the (Royal) City and Vezîr, Auŷ.” Murch. This Vezîr
is mentioned on a stela in Vien. (No. 117; _cf._ _Rec. des trav._,
IX, 62.)

3. “The Scribe of the Vezîr, Ren-ef-senb.” Thomp.

4. “The Superintendent of the Seal, Neb-re-sehui.” L. 6288. Three other
scarabs of this official are known: one is in the v-B. Coll. (Fr.
_Sc._ 90), another is in the Fitzw. Mus. (Budge, _Cat._ 155), and
the third is in Mr. Nahmann’s hands in Cairo.

5. “The Superintendent of the Seal, Up-em-heb.” Gr.

6. “The Superintendent of the Seal, Senba.” Gr. Another scarab of this
official is in the B.M. (24108, P. _Sc._ 445.)

7 and 8. “The Superintendent of the Seal, Senb-su-ma.” (Gr. and M-G.)
Several other scarabs of Senb-su-ma are known. Three are figured by
Petrie (SC. 446-448), from the Louvre, Petrie and Grant Colls.;
other specimens are in the Cairo Mus., the Amh. Coll. and the Edws.
Coll. A beautiful light blue glazed specimen was found at Kahûn (P.
_I._ VIII, 42), its provenance and style pointing to the late
Twelfth Dynasty as the date of this official. Senb-su-ma is named
on several stelae; one, in the Cairo Mus., gives the name of his
father, Sert-taui (M. _Cat. Ab._ 784); another, in the Leyd. Mus.
(V. 106) names his wife, “the Lady Tau-ma;” a third stela, in the
Cairo Mus. (M. _Cat. Ab._ 904) gives the name of his son, the _ari
at abu_, Pepa, whose scarab seal is in the Meux Coll. (Budge,
_Cat._ 455). Senb-su-ma’s name also occurs on stelae in the B.M.
(252); in the Ermitage Mus., St. Petersburg (58); and in the Turin
Mus. (1303). His tomb was at Dahshûr, a slab of stone from it
having been found in the cemetery of that place (M. _Mast._, p.
583).

9. “The Superintendent of the Seal, Yu-senb.” v-B. (Fr. _Sc._ 86.)

10. “The Superintendent of the Seal, Amenhetep.” v-B. (Fr. _Sc._ 91.)
Three other scarabs of this State Officer are known: one, with
continuous loop-pattern around the name, was found at Abydos
(_M.D._ 52 f.), and is figured in Pl. XVI, 3; another is in the
Petrie Coll., and the third is in the v-B. (Fr. _Sc._ 87.)

11. “The Superintendent of the Seal, Herfu.” L.

12. “The Superintendent of the Seal, Erde-ne-Ptah.” B. 17230. Another
specimen is in the Petrie Coll.

13. “The Deputy Superintendent of the Seal, Sehetep-ab-ra.” C.M. From
Abydos. (M. _Cat. Ab._ p. 541; _cf._ _M.D._, pl. 48 m.)

14. “The Scribe of the Superintendent of the Seal, Nehesi.” P.

15. “The Mayor, Tehuti-nekht.” Amh. This scarab was bought in Cairo in
1899, and came with many other antiquities from the tomb of
Tehuti-nekht at El Bersheh. Hence it can be dated to the reign of
Usertsen I, or at latest to the early years of Amenemhat II (see
Griffith and Newberry, _El Bersheh_ II, p. 13); it is consequently
the oldest _absolutely_ dated scarab of an official known.

16. “The Mayor, Amenemhat-senb-ne-Hather-ab.” L. Found in Phoenicia.

17. “The Mayor, Amenemhat.” L.

18. “The Mayor, Auŷ-mes.” B.M. 21906.

19. “The Great _Uartu_ of the (Royal) City, Sa-sebek.” -G. Another
scarab of this official, ornamented with a continuous loop
decoration, is in the v-B. (Fr. _Sc._ 118.)

20. “The _Uartu_ of the Ruler’s Table, Sebekhetep, son of the _Uartu_ of
the Ruler’s Table, Mentuhetep.” Ashm. Several other scarabs of this
official are known; two specimens are in the Louvre (P. _Sc._ 389,
391); another is in the Turin Mus. (1134; Klaproth, _Palin Coll._
1113); a fourth is in the Cairo Mus. (3795; from Abydos, M. _Cat.
Abyd._, p. 541; _cf._ _M.D._ pl. 48 n); and a fifth and well
preserved example is in the Petrie Coll.

21. “The Great General Pehui-ef-hu?” Murch.

22. “The General, Hora.” Ashm.

23. “The Superintendent of the _Mentiu_ (Asiatics), Ren-senb.” Evans.

24. “The Superintendent of the Great Kitchen (?) Herŷt (?)-si-hetep.”
Murch.

25. “The King’s Friend, the Superintendent of the Musicians, Neb-qemiu.”
Murch. A stela of this man, in the Cairo Mus. (M. _Cat. Abyd._
813), gives the names of his father, Hora, and mother, Sefget, and
certainly dates from the period of the Sebekhetep kings.

26. “The Surveyor, Nefer-sebek-dedu.” B.M. 28235.

27. “The Royal Scribe ... Aka-senb-na.” Murch.

28. “The Private Sealer, Sa-hather-aa.” Murch.

29. “The Storekeeper, Neb-seshenu.” Murch.

30. “The Instructor of the Followers, Deda, son of the Instructor of the
Followers, Beba.” Murch.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

PLATE XII.

SCARABS OF OFFICIALS OF THE
TWELFTH TO FOURTEENTH DYNASTIES—_continued_.

1. “The Royal Son, Antefa.” P. From the style of the cutting and the
back of this scarab, I should be inclined to recognize in this
Antefa one of the princes of the intermediate period between the
Thirteenth and Seventeenth Dynasties, rather than a prince of the
Eleventh Dynasty.

2. “The Royal Son Kha-kau.” L. Formerly in the Palin Coll. (Klaproth,
Pl. VI, 295.) Perhaps this is a scarab of Usertsen III before the
Ra was added to his name (?).

3. “The Royal Son, Sa-hather.” C.M. 3796. (M. _Cat. Abd._ 539.)
Sa-hather was the son of King Neferhetep.

4 and 5. “The Great Royal Wife who is united to the beauty of the White
Crown, Ana.” L. and v-B. Another specimen is in the Petrie Coll.
The style and cutting of these scarabs would point to the period of
the Sebekhetep kings.

6. “The Royal Wife, Sat-sebek.” Davis. A similar scarab of this queen is
in the B.M. 32265.

7. “The Royal Clothier, Nehy.” v-B.

8. “Tehepenkhet-mery (?).” B.M. 4323.

9. “The Scribe of the Great Prison, Sesa.” P.

10. “The Great _Uab_-priest of Hather, Mistress of Tep-ahu,
Khnem-set-heru-sebek (?).” v-B.

11. “The Royal Friend, Dedut.” B.M. 4322.

12. “The Guardian of the Storehouse, Hap-hetepu.” B.M. 17544.

13. “The Great One of the Southern Tens, Tha-ath.” L.

14. “The Royal Friend, Hepu-em-sha.” P.

15. “The Steward Sep, Son of Ankh.” v-B.

16. “The Royal Friend, Sa-sebek.” C. (_cf._ _M.A._ 48 i).

17. “The Doctor and Judge, Ha-ankh-ef.” Ashm.

18. “The Lady, Merŷt.” Gr.

19. “The Lady, Nub-em-sau-es.” T.

20. “The Superintendent of the Interior, the Superintendent of the North
Land, Senb-tefi.” Ashm.

21. “The Royal Friend, Aŷ.” Gr.

22. “The Doctor and Embalmer, Ptah-ur.” B.M. 29226.

23. “The Priest of Sebek in Thebes, Neferhetep.” B.M. 24132.

24. “Sebek-aa-senes.” Murch.

25. “The Royal Friend, Apepa.” W. (W. _S.B._)

26. “The Great Royal Wife who is united to the beauty of the White
Crown, Nub-hetep-tha.”[125] Murch. Another Scarab of this Queen is
given in Pl. XLIV, 13.

27. “The Lady, Nenna.” Murch. A lady of this name is mentioned on a
stela in the C.M. (No. 77).

28. “The Royal Sealer, Chief Steward and Royal Attendant, Tha-tha.”
Davis. Tha-tha is named on a stela in the Fitzw. Mus. (Budge,
_Cat._ 73).

29. “The Royal Sealer, Chief Steward and Royal Attendant, Ren-ef-em-ab.”
B.M. 28226.

30. “The Guardian of the Storehouse, Hor-khent-nefer.” Murch.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

PLATE XIII.

SCARABS OF OFFICIALS OF THE TWELFTH TO FOURTEENTH DYNASTIES—_continued_.

1. “The Royal Son, Tar (or Ar?).” Murch.

2. “The Steward, Teta-shera.” Berl. 3613.

3. “The Attendant, Antef.” Berl. 9747.

4. “The Steward, Sebek-se-ankh.” Berl. 13618.

5. “The Superintendent of the ... Ar-sa-khet.” Edws. Found at Kahûn (P.
_I._ VIII, 20).

6. “The Superintendent of the District, Mentunesu.” Petrie Coll. Found
at Illâhûn (P. _I._ VIII, 41).

7. “The Lady Hez-uah-mert (?).” Berl. 3618.

8. “May the King give an offering to Ptah-seker for the _ka_ of the
_Uart_ of the Ruler’s Table, Nushu.” Berl. 3664.

9. “The Great One of the Southern Tens, Sebek-ur.” Berl. 7417.

10. “The Royal Sealer and Chief Steward, Aka.” Fitzw. (Budge, _Cat._
157). Another scarab of this official is in the v-B. (Fr. _Sc._
85.)

11. “The Superintendent of the Interior of the _Dep._, Nehŷ.” Fitzw.
(Budge, _Cat._ 154.)

12. “The ankhet[126] of Upper Egypt, Nefer-hetep.”

13. “The Scribe of the Temple of Hetep-Usertsen, Senbu.” Clay-sealing
found at Kahûn. (P. _I._ IX, 26.) Hetep-Usertsen was the name of
the pyramid of Usertsen III at Dahshûr. (Griffith, _K.P._, pp. 89
and 90.)

14. “The _Uartu_ of the Ruler’s Table, Hora.” Chicago Mus.

15. “The Regulator of the Palace, the Superintendent of the Temple,
Hora.” Clay-sealing found at Illâhûn. (P. _I._ IX, 18.)

16. “The Superintendent of the Interior of the _Dep._, Ankha.” Gr.

17. “The Royal Sealer and General, Sa-nab.” P.

18. “The Guardian of the Department of Meat, Hor-ankh.” v-B.

19. “May the King give an offering to Ptah-seker for the _ka_ of the
Guardian of the House of Offerings, Sen-pu.” Found at Illâhûn (P.
_I._ IX, 17). Another scarab of this official is given in Pl. XXIX,
2.

20. “The Scribe in charge of the Seal of Hetep-Usertsen and the Seal of
Ankh-Usertsen, Y-ab.” A clay-sealing found at Illâhûn (P. _I._ IX,
20).

21. “The Mayor and Superintendent of the Temple, Ankh.” Found at
Illâhûn. (P. _I._ IX, 16.)

22. “The Royal Sealer, Chief Steward and Royal Attendant, Erde-en-Ptah.”
Davis. (P. _Sc._ 438.)

23. “Amenemhat.” Berl. 15135.

24. “The Royal Sealer and Superintendent of the Field Labourers,
Surtha.” P.

25. “The Scribe of the Army, Nefer-iu.” Berl. 9519.

26. “The Slave of the Ruler, Sat-Ptah.” Gr.