And I would first observe, that all the versions of Manetho place the Shepherds as the 17th dynasty, except Africanus. Africanus puts them as the 15th dynasty; and then places as the 16th, 32 Greek Shepherd kings, but without names, who reigned 518 years; he then gives the 17th, as 43 Shepherd kings and 43 Theban Diospolites, and says that these Shepherds and Thebans reigned altogether 151 years. Again, the Old Chronicle allows four descents in 103 years to the 17th dynasty, and calls them Memphites; by which the Shepherd dynasty is evidently intended, as they held their court at Memphis: and they are so given by Eusebius, who calls them Shepherds. Again, Syncellus says that Kertos reigned 29 years according to Josephus, but according to Manetho 44; which is very singular, as he is omitted by both, and the length of his reign included in that of his successor Aseth.*

* For all the above passages, see Anc. Frag.

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The difficulties resulting from these conflicting statements among the literary fragments of Egyptian history, have heretofore been excessively increased by the monumental discoveries. The tablet of Abydos, discovered by Mr. Bankes, originally contained a catalogue of 25 reigns. The first eight have been lost by the fracture of the stone. The 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th, and 13th, are the immediate predecessors of the 18th dynasty; and the remaining 12 are fully recognized as the kings of the 18th dynasty, concluding with Ramesses II. who erected the tablet. Two of the lost reigns, viz., the 7th, Osirtesen I. and the 8th, were supplied by Lord Prudhoe and Major Felix; and the 6th, by Mr. Wilkinson, from different fragments; and the tablet of Karnak, discovered by Mr. Burton, supplies the rest :*

* This I believe was first pointed out in a plate published by Mr. Cullimore in the Transactions of the Royal Society of Literature. I am, however, utterly at a loss to conceive upon what authority

but it must be observed, that the tablet of Karnak gives one more reign than the tablet of Abydos will admit.

Of the first 5 kings which would come upon the tablet of Abydos, the signets only are at present recognized, and not the names. Then follow 8 kings, whose

names are found, as well as their signets. They are given by Mr. Wilkinson and Mr. Cullimore as below:

Now, as the names of some of these kings, especially of No. 7 and No. 12,

he has preceded this tablet by another tablet of signets, which is found in the same chamber indeed, but in itself evidently disconnected. As the paper referring to the plate is not yet published, it is impossible to judge.

appear upon monuments erected by themselves in different parts of Egypt, a difficulty is raised respecting the statement of Manetho, that the Shepherds immediately preceded the 18th dynasty, by shewing that there were native kings of Egypt, who completed buildings of costly magnificence, at the very time when the country is asserted to have been under the dominion of an enemy.

I believe I have here fairly stated every difficulty, both from the literary and monumental fragments; and I would offer the following solution, which presents itself from a comprehensive survey of all the documents before us:

That the tablet of Abydos originally contained a complete catalogue of the native kings of Egypt, from Menes to Ramesses II.*

* The surplus signet supplied by the tablet of Karnak appears to me to present no difficulty to this hypothesis; for if the ruins of London should be hereafter ransacked, and tablets of the kings

-That after 190 years, the Shepherds invaded the kingdom, and at first subjected both Upper and Lower Egypt to their dominion; but established themselves principally in Lower Egypt, and at Memphis, and fortified Avaris as a strong hold.

-That previously to the invasion, the kingdom had arrived at some degree of

of England from the Conquest should be found, or more than one collection of medals, they would probably differ in the number of the apparent reigns, owing to the different view in which Cromwell, Philip and Mary, and the joint reigns of William and Mary, and the sole reign of William III., and the alternating reigns of Henry VI. and Edward IV., would be regarded: and the different tablets would very probably present 34 or 35, or even 36 reigns. There was formerly a series of Papal portraits round the church of St. Paul without the walls of Rome, there is another in Florence; I strongly suspect they differ, as not one of the ancient catalogues of the Bishops of Rome, Jerusalem, or Antioch, as given by Syncellus and Nicephorus agree. It is possible, however, that the name of Menes was not originally upon the tablet; for Sanchoniatho says that the monarchy began with Thoth.