Sobekhotep VIII
Sekhemre Seusertawy Sobekhotep VIII was an ancient Egyptian ruler during the Second Intermediate Period whose exact chronological placement remains uncertain. He may have ruled over the Theban region in Upper Egypt. Scholars debate whether he belonged to the 13th, 16th, or 17th Dynasty. If Sobekhotep VIII was a king of the 16th Dynasty, it is thought that he is listed in the Turin Canon, which credits him with a 16-year reign.
Reign
Almost nothing is known about Sekhemre Seusertawy Sobekhotep.Reign length. His reign length lasted to the end of Year 4 as attested by the Inundation Stele, which is his only and highest attestation. The stela was dated to the very end of Year 4 just prior to Egyptian New Year and he most likely continued to reign into his Year 5 based on this evidence. If he can be associated with Turin King List 11:2, then the list credits the ruler with 16 regnal years. However, a longer reign would suggest there would be more attestations of this ruler.
Attestation
The Inundation Stela
The only contemporary attestation of Sobekhotep VIII is a stela found inside the third pylon at Karnak. This stela was used as construction material to fill the pylon during Amenhotep III's extensive works at the site. The stela is dated to the epagomenal, or final five days, of Sobekhotep VIII's fourth regnal year, and describes his attitude at a temple, probably that of Karnak, during a massive Nile flood:According to Egyptologist John Baines, who studied the stela in detail, by coming to the temple as it was flooded, the king reenacted the Egyptian story of the creation of the world in imitating the actions of the creator god Amun-Ra, to which the stela iconography closely associates the king, ordering the waters to recede from around the primordial mount.