For more than two millennia, Cleopatra has become a global symbol of beauty. Her allure inspired painters, poets, and sculptors. In history she was portrayed as an unparalleled beauty, a woman who knew the secrets of remaining perpetually youthful.
Queen Cleopatra was the last queen of the Ptolemaic dynasty and ruled Hellenistic Egypt for 21 years. Her name is associated with the Roman leaders Julius Caesar and Mark Antony. These historical figures were said to have been captivated by Cleopatra’s beauty. But what do history and archaeological research say about it?
Two hundred years after Cleopatra’s reign, the Roman historian Cassius Dio described the queen as follows: “She possessed charm and an uncommon beauty. Everyone who saw her fell in love with her at first sight.”
Plutarch, however, portrayed Cleopatra as “a woman whose beauty was not in itself extraordinary, but simply attractive,” yet there are no paintings or statues to substantiate either view. The only images of her are coins issued for political propaganda, which depict Cleopatra as “hook-nosed and masculine.”
The images of Cleopatra on coins were political instruments designed to emphasize her Ptolemaic lineage and claims to power; they did not reflect her real appearance and often made her resemble the men of her line.
AzEns.az/ Jalya Orujeva