Cleopatra

Fabled for her sexual allure and cunning intelligence, Cleopatra VII of Egypt has fascinated generations of admirers and detractors since her tumultuous life ended in suicide on Octavians' capture of Egypt in 30 BC. The last of the Ptolemaic monarchs who had ruled Egypt as Hellenistic Greek kings and Egyptian pharaohs for 300 years, Cleopatra created her own mythology, becoming an icon in her own lifetime and even more so after her death. This book explores the ways in which she was depicted in antiquity, within the context of the iconography of contemporary coinage, statues and other images of Egyptian, Greek and Roman rulers, and then examines the image of Cleopatra from the Renaissance to modern times, as seen in plays, opera, painting, ceramics and even jewellery. Exciting new research has revealed seven Egyptian-style statues believed to represent Cleopatra, and two portraits probably commissioned in Rome while she lived there with Julius Caesar. Published to accompany a major international exhibition, the book will be well-illustrated, with 450 photographs, most of them in colour.