Please submit feedback to contribute@factinate.com. Cleopatra: A Life by Stacy Schiff Little, Brown, 368 pp., $29.99 Mary Beard Mary Beard is Professor of Classics at the University of Cambridge. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our, Press J to jump to the feed. Best of The New York Review, plus books, events, and other items of interest. When she was summoned to meet the TriumvirateAKA the three men who took power in Rome after the death of Caesarshe sailed down the Nile on a golden barge adorned with purple sails and silver oars. But she didnt want to share the power with him either, so had him murdered in order to make her son her co-ruler. Julius Caesar and Cleopatra meet while Egypt is in the midst of a civil war. ), Read another story from us:The Forgotten Son of Caesar and Cleopatra. He took the name Emperor Augustus, and he carried a statue of her through Romes streets every August in triumph. Though she got the throne at 17, she was well-educated and well-prepared to take over the reins. For all the mark she made on the world, Cleopatra only lived 39 years. The pair loved playing games and pranks with one another, and one in particular has become the stuff of legend. After his wife died waging a war on his behalf, he remarriedbut not to Cleopatra. In fact, she wore elaborate wigs made by slaves. What kind of poison did Cleopatra use to kill herself? Cleopatras time in Rome was officially up. Cleopatra was the first Ptolemaic ruler who learned to speak and write in Egyptian. Their daughter, Cleopatra Selene, became an important ruler in her own right. The era of the Pharaohs was almost incomprehensibly longthe first dynasty of Egypt began in 3100 BCover 5,000 years ago. Ironically, one of our most powerful, albeit indirect, connections to Cleopatras Alexandria is the two obelisks known as Cleopatras Needles, one of which now stands in Central Park, the other on the Thames Embankment. Cleopatra was born in 39 BC to father Pharaoh Ptolemy XII. Cleopatras younger brother Ptolemy XIII now sat on the Egyptian throne at only 13 years old, and he ruled with all the maturity and tact one would expect from a 13-year-old. Roman propaganda painted Cleopatra as a debauched temptress who used her sex appeal as a political weapon, but she may have been more renowned for her intellect than her appearance. She was even something of a feminist, giving Egyptian women rights, unlike other women of the day. Why would an Egyptian queen bear a Greek name, you ask? She was born in 69 BC and died by suicide in August of 30 BCbut more on that later. In addition to being the first ruler to speak the language of the Egyptians, Cleopatra was also the first in 300 years to embrace Egyptian culture and customs. As the story goes, she arrived on a golden barge with purple sails and rowed by oars made of silver. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. Join thousands of others and start your morning with our Fact Of The Day newsletter. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. Cleopatra and her son were now co-regents. she didnt want to be paraded around as a prisoner. It is here that context tends to substitute, misleadingly, for biography. No one knows for sure, but her mother was likely his wife, Cleopatra V Tryphaena. Foreign Influence Why would an Egyptian queen bear a Greek name, you ask? Despite their 31-year age difference, Cleopatra and Julius Caesar were lovers for two years. Cleopatra nicknames: Cleopatra, , Cleoara, o, Cleo, Cleopatra nicknames and names Nicknames, cool fonts, symbols and stylish names for Cleopatra - Cleopatra, , Cleoara, o, Cleo, . We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. German historian Christoph Schaefer has offered yet another theory: The queen may have used a potent mixture of opium, hemlock, and wolfsbane a potion likely tested on a few unfortunate souls to ensure it was pain-free. A fragment of papyrus excavated from the rubbish dumps of the Egyptian town of Oxyrhynchus gives a precious glimpse of Germanicus visit. This information is drawn from any ancient source that can conveniently be brought into the picture, all jumbled together: the second-century-AD doctor Soranus, who provides most of the information we have about ancient obstetrics (including the detail of the obsidian), a papyrus letter from five centuries earlier (on what to look for in a midwife), and a considerable variety of writers on the principles and practice of contraception, from the Hippocratic corpus to the Roman satirist Juvenal. To be sure, there are one or two pieces of vivid historical testimony, occasionally more or less firsthand, buried within these stories. So Schiff invents a picture of the infant princess scamper[ing] down the colonnaded walkways of the palace, play[ing] with terra-cotta dolls and dollhouses, making regular trips up the Nile, and from an early age[being] comfortable among politicians, ambassadors, scholars. These may be innocent phrases, but they are only pretending to be biography in the usual sense of that word. So not only did he sort-of ditch Cleopatra, he also had two children with Octavia. 4 Why was Cleopatra considered to be a god? Following a handful of battles, Mark Antonys naval fleet surrendered to Octavian in August, 30 BC. cute nicknames for cleo; nicknames for the name cleo; nickname cleopatra rok; nickname cleopatra vii; cleopatra nyc; nickname of cleopatra vii; nickname of cleopatra vii rok; nickname for cleon . She was the daughter of Ptolemy XII (Auletes), a descendant of Ptolemy I Soter, one of Alexander the Greats generals. More than a little annoying, since shed already been working alongside her father for years, but that wasnt the worst part. Want to tell us to write facts on a topic? According to his estimate, the pearls were worth 60 million sestertiiroughly $28.5 million dollars today. Even the richest Ptolemaic monarchs were surely not capable of constructing that. While Roman historian Dio Cassius described Cleopatra as a woman of surpassing beauty, a number of modern historians have characterized her as less than exceptionally attractive. We have here, in other words, a direct connection right back to an eyewitness in Cleopatras kitchens, more than two thousand years ago. What was a nickname for Cleopatra? The pair even started a drinking clubthe society of Inimitable Liverswhich indulged in feasts and wine-binges, and engaged in elaborate games and contests. Noticing eight boars being cooked, he assumed that a very large party was being catered. After burying him, the 39-year-old Cleopatra took her own life, though how is uncertain. Going along with her shenanigans, Caesar commissioned a gold statue of Cleopatra which was erected in the temple of Venus in Rome. In a last excess of devotion, he had himself carried to Cleopatras retreat and there died, after bidding her to make her peace with Octavian. Her father promoted the teenage Cleopatra to joint regent and deputy, and she ruled alongside her father for four years, during which time she gained valuable knowledge and experience. There are obelisks called "Cleopatra's Needles" but they have nothing to do with Cleopatra VII.There is no name for Cleopatra's obelisk because she does not . Copyright 2023 WittyQuestion.com | All rights reserved. The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. After the terrifying spectacle, many wouldve kept a low profilebut not Cleopatra. Even without a turbulent queen, Egypt was always liable to be trouble. (Photo: Wikimedia Commons [Public Domain]). The naval Battle of Actium, in which Octavian faced the combined forces of Antony and Cleopatra on September 2, 31 bce, was a disaster for the Egyptians. Yes, thats Ptolemy the brother-lover. As a member, you'll join us in our effort to support the arts. Get immediate access to the current issue and over 25,000 articles from the archives, plus the NYR App. #wtf #comic #relationship #relatable #spicy #facts #funny #oof #nature #people #julius #ceesar #knew #cleopatra #more #even #giving #golden #mouth #nickname. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics". In her case the best we have is a possible signature on a document authorizing tax concessions and the report that in her final days she muttered again and again, I shall not be led in triumph (whether the surviving fragments of writing on cosmetics, dandruff, and weights and measure, attributed to a Cleopatra are by her or not is now anyones guess). As we mentioned earlier, while in Egypt, Cleopatra had fancied herself the reincarnation of the Greek goddess Isis. When, at the Battle of Philippi in 42 bce, Caesars assassins were routed, Mark Antony became the heir apparent of Caesars authorityor so it seemed, for Caesars great-nephew and personal heir, Octavian, was but a sickly boy. In part maybe, but it was not just that. Each was determined to use the other. After the Roman armies of Octavian (the future emperor Augustus) defeated their combined forces, Antony and Cleopatra committed suicide, and Egypt fell under Roman domination. Alexander Helios was awarded Armenia and the territory beyond the Euphrates, his infant brother Ptolemy the lands to the west of it. She erased his name from official documents and even ordered that his face be removed from coins. In 50 BC, only a year after she ascended to the throne, Cleopatra became embroiled in a dispute between Roman troops and a Syrian governor. Political unrest caused by the bad conditions made a coup against Cleopatra almost inevitablebut as always, she had an ace up her sleeve. According to the historian Tacitus, the ostensible purpose of this imperial visit was to relieve the famine then afflicting the country (which he did by simply opening up some granaries where grain was stored). While Antony is said to have fatally stabbed himself in the stomach, Cleopatras method of suicide is less certain. Three years later Antony was convinced that he and Octavian could never come to terms. The name Cleopatra has become synonymous with exotic beauty and allure, but the real Cleopatras beauty was further down the list of her charms. The name Cleopatra is girl's name of Greek origin meaning "glory of the father". But what of the myth? Cleopatra and Antony died at their own hand in 30 BC, after being cornered by Octavians forces in Alexandria. In the end, we should probably resist the allure of biography and stick with the Augustan myth and Horaces demented queen.. Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features. In fact, we now take this image so much for granted that it comes as a shock to discover different versions of the Cleopatra myth, from different sides. Occasionally these bons mots come rather too thick and fast for my taste. She may have been dubbed Queen of the Nile, but Cleopatra wasnt Egyptian by birth. Archaeologists have found a 2,000-year-old mummy with a gold tongue at an ancient Egyptian site called Taposiris Magna. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. First, she had Mark Antony alerted that shed died by her own hand. Cleopatra was in Rome when Caesar was murdered in 44 bce. Native Tongue Cleopatra was the first Ptolemaic ruler who learned to speak and write in Egyptian. Like any good Egyptian ruler, a luxurious tomb was already waiting for her. She was not going to allow that to happen to her. The Egyptian Queen commanded her own army, enamored not one but two Roman rulers, and inspired countless works of art, literature, and film. Just months after her father died and she took the throne, 18-year-old Cleopatra made it clear that she had no intention of sharing power with her younger brother (Ptolemy XIII). Greats generals Why would an Egyptian queen bear a Greek name, you join! A golden barge with purple sails and rowed by oars made of silver to speak and in... Morning with our fact of the Egyptian town of Oxyrhynchus gives a precious of. Stuff of legend despite their 31-year age difference, Cleopatra V Tryphaena sails and rowed by oars made silver... Thousands of others and start your morning with our fact of the Egyptian town Oxyrhynchus! 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