The =Hyksos=.—Comparatively soon after the downfall of the XIIIth dynasty, the Delta and northern parts of Egypt were little by little occupied by a confederation of Semitic nomad tribes to whose leaders, on the authority of =Flavius Josephus=, the historian (who died about A.D. 100), the name of =Hyksos= or =Shepherd Kings= has been given. The word Hyksos is derived from two Egyptian words _Ḥequ-Shasu_ 𓋾𓈎𓀀𓏪𓆷𓄿𓇓𓅱𓼖𓏪, _i.e._, the Shêkhs or Governors of the Shasu,[34] or nomadic tribes of the Eastern Desert, Syria, etc. It is extremely unlikely that they fought for the possession of Egypt; and we may assume that they migrated into the Delta, and that, after a few generations, they found that their power and numbers were sufficiently great to enable them to assume the mastery of the whole country of Lower Egypt. The Hyksos, who had settled in the Delta, adopted, little by little, the manners and customs of the Egyptians; and at length their chiefs adopted the Egyptian language and religion, and assumed the titles of the old Pharaohs, and became to all intents and purposes Egyptian kings. They apparently worshipped several gods, the chief of whom was =Sutekh= 𓇓𓏲𓐱𓏏𓐰𓐍𓀭, and him they identified with =Set= 𓋴𓏏𓐰𓈜𓃩, or =Suti= 𓇓𓅱𓏏𓐰𓏭𓃩, the old Egyptian god of darkness and evil. [Illustration: Granite lion inscribed with the name of Khian, a Hyksos king, about B.C. 1800. [Northern Egyptian Gallery, Bay 5, No. 340.]] According to Josephus the chief kings of the Hyksos were: =Salatis=, who reigned at Memphis, and fortified the city of =Avaris=, near Tanis, and garrisoned it with 250,000 men; he reigned 13 years. He was succeeded by =Beon=, who reigned 44 years, and =Apachnas=, who reigned 36 years and 7 months, and =Apophis=, who reigned 61 years, and =Jonias= who reigned 50 years and 1 month, and =Assis=, who reigned 49 years and 2 months. Of the objects in the British Museum which belong to the =Hyksos Period= may be mentioned: =1.= The famous =Mathematical Papyrus= (No. 10,058), which was written in the reign of =Āa-user-Rā= 𓍹𓐼𓇳𓉻𓐰𓂝𓄊𓋴𓐽𓍺, or =Ȧpepȧ I=; =2.= A red granite slab from the temple of Bubastis, inscribed with the name of =Ȧpepȧ= 𓍹𓐼𓇋𓀁𓊪𓐰𓊪𓇋𓐽𓍺 (Bay 23, No. =339=); =3.= A scarab inscribed =Āa-peḥ=, the prenomen of =Nubti=, a king whose cartouches appear on the famous =Stele of 400 years=[35] (No. 32,368); =4.= The =granite= lion (Bay 5, No. =340=) on the breast of which is cut the cartouche 𓊹𓄤𓍹𓐼𓇳𓋴𓮆𓈖𓐽𓍺 _Suser-en-Rā_, _i.e._, the prenomen of King =Khian= 𓍹𓐼𓐍𓇌𓄿𓈖𓐽𓍺. This lion was purchased at Baghdad, but its _provenance_ is unknown. Besides these the British Museum possesses a large number of =scarabs of the Hyksos Period= inscribed with the names of kings and royal personages.