Queen Cleopatra (69 B.C. – 30 B.C.) was one of Egypt’s most famous queens and the last active pharaoh of Egypt from the Macedonian Greek Ptolemaic Dynasty. Her full name was Cleopatra VII Thea Philopator, which in Greek meant “Cleopatra the Father-Loving Goddess”. This was later shortened to Cleopatra, meaning “Famous in Her Father”.
Cleopatra ascended the throne in 51 B.C. when she was only 18 years old, and ruled Egypt until her suicide death in 30 B.C.
Cleopatra was not ethnically Egyptian
Although Cleopatra was born in Egypt, her ancestry can be traced to Macedonian Greece and Ptolemy I Soter, who was a general in Alexander the Great’s army that conquered Egypt in 332 B.C.
The oldest daughter of Pharaoh Ptolemy XII Auletes and Cleopatra V Tryphaena, she readily embraced Egypt’s ancient customs and was the first in the Ptolemaic dynasty to learn the Egyptian language. Her native language was Koine Greek.
Was Cleopatra black?
This is a question that has long been debated. An Egyptologist, Sally-Ann Ashton, after trying to reconstruct the queen’s appearance, concluded among other things, that Cleopatra’s skin colour was dark.
Renaissance art also showed her having dark-coloured skin. However, this was refuted as none of the artists were eyewitnesses. Instead, their works were based on assumptions that Egyptians were dark-skinned.
Her Macedonian Greek bloodline suggests the strong possibility that Cleopatra had a fair skin colour. Researchers add that she did not have a single drop of Egyptian blood in her, as no Ptolemaic king had an Egyptian wife.
How did Queen Cleopatra actually look like?
While Hollywood movies portrayed her as a stunning beauty, many historians did not regard her as being physically attractive. They did, however, have high regard for her personality and intelligence.
Opinions aside, artefacts such as busts showed her to have soft features, thin lips, a sharp chin, and a large nose. Her profiles on coins may differ but they reveal one prominent feature – an aquiline nose. Only the degree to which her nose is hooked varies.
On coins minted by Marc Antony, her nose hooks dramatically, her forehead slopes broadly, her chin is pointy, and her face is more masculine.
Julius Caesar and Mark Antony
Aside from her other accomplishments, Cleopatra was better known for her relationships with Julius Caesar and Mark Antony.
During the time they were lovers, Caesar helped Cleopatra regain her throne after she had to flee Egypt from her younger brother Ptolemy XIII in 48 B.C. A year later, Cleopatra gave birth to Ptolemy Caesar, known to Alexandrians as Caesarion or “Little Caesar”. It is not confirmed if Julius Caesar was the father.
Two years after Caesar was murdered, she met Mark Antony, who destroyed Caesar’s assassins. It is claimed that she seduced Antony who was married at the time. Sadly, their relationship met a tragic end. In battle, Antony received false news that his beloved Cleopatra had died, and fell on his sword. After Cleopatra buried him, she herself committed suicide. How she died is unclear by many writers suggest she used an asp, a symbol of divine royalty.
The tomb of Queen Cleopatra and Antony
Historians wrote that the two lovers were buried together but their tomb was never found.
Now, an Egyptian Egyptologist archaeologist, Zahi Hawass has announced that he is close to finding the tomb. He proposes that the burial site is in the region of Taposiris Magna, 30 kilometres away from Alexandria.
Are we finally going to solve a mystery that has existed for 2 centuries?
