In connexion with the XIIth dynasty must be mentioned King =Ḥer=, who may have been a son of Ȧmenemḥāt III, or of Usertsen III (see his scarab, No. 37,652), and an Usertsen with the prenomen of =Seneferȧb-Rā=, who is sometimes called =Usertsen IV=. [Illustration: Sepulchral stele of Tatiankef, the son of Tenȧuit. Found in Malta. XIIth dynasty. [Northern Egyptian Gallery, Bay 5, No. 181.]] The rule of the XIIth dynasty was long and prosperous; and art, and sculpture, and literature flourished. The art of the period is developed directly out of that of the Ancient Empire, but one of the most prominent characteristics is an increased tendency towards realism which is especially seen in the designs and workmanship of small objects. The =Scarabs= of the XIIth dynasty are particularly interesting and beautiful, and a splendid set of examples is exhibited in the Fourth Egyptian Room. The =sepulchral stelae= of the period are also very interesting, and many of them exhibit clearly the transition stages between the “false door” of the maṣṭaba tomb of the Ancient Empire and the stele, or tablet, which stood by itself in the tomb. The British Museum Collection is rich in XIIth dynasty stelae, comprising examples of every important variety. The inscriptions upon them usually open with the formula =suten-ṭā-ḥetep=, 𓇓𓏙𓊵𓐰𓏏𓐱𓊪 which is followed by a prayer to one or more gods for sepulchral offerings and for “glory in heaven, strength upon earth, and triumph in the Other World.” Opinions differ as to the meaning of the formula _suten ṭā ḥetep_. Some think that it is a prayer to “the king to give an offering”; and others that it is a prayer for “an offering like that of a king”; and many different renderings have been proposed by Egyptologists. It is of course possible that, under the IVth dynasty, the formula may have been a prayer that an offering might be given by the king, for the king was regarded as the equal of Anubis and Osiris and other gods of the dead; but it is manifestly impossible that every man throughout Egypt could expect the king to send him an offering at his death, and we are therefore driven to conclude that the original meaning of the formula was forgotten at a very early period, and that it was only prefixed to funerary texts at the dictates of custom or tradition. If it had any meaning at all in the later dynasties, it would probably be that of a petition to one or more gods for the gift of an offering like unto that made for a king after his death. Sepulchral stelae are also valuable because they give the titles of the offices held by deceased persons, and because they often supply biographies of men who played important parts in the history of their country.