![]() Times Higher Education Supplement "A very readable account of the life of Cleopatra VII, and one that goes some way to redress the way in which she is often viewed. Stripping away our preconceptions, many of them as old as Egypt's Roman conquerors, Egyptologist Joyce Tyldesley offers a magnificent biography of a most extraordinary queen. But these tales of seduction, intrigue, and suicide by asp have obfuscated Cleopatra's true political genius. Cleopatra is often portrayed as a woman ruled by emotion rather than reason a queen hurtling towards inevitable self-destruction. ![]() Her story was well documented by her near contemporaries, and the tragic tale of contrasts and oppositions-the seductive but failing power of ancient Egypt versus the virile strength of modern Rome-is so familiar we almost feel that we know Cleopatra. Ruthless in dealing with her enemies, many within her own family, Cleopatra steered her kingdom through difficult times, and very nearly succeeded in creating an eastern empire to rival the growing might of Rome. Her famous liaisons with Julius Caesar and Mark Antony had as much to do with politics as the heart. Highly intelligent, she spoke many languages and was rumored to be the only Ptolemy to read and speak Egyptian. But who was Cleopatra, really? Cleopatra was the last ruler of the Macedonian dynasty of Ptolemies. Shakespeare portrayed her as an icon of tragic love. Pascal said the shape of her nose changed the history of the world. The Romans regarded her as "fatale monstrum"-a fatal omen. ![]()
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