One of Egypt’s most famous and charismatic rulers, Cleopatra first co-ruled with Ptolemy XIII, who was both her husband and her brother. When the ambitious Cleopatra tried to nudge her brother out of power, she was removed from power and exiled from Egypt.
Cleopatra came back into power over Egypt after Julius Caesar, who had plans to annex Egypt, grew angry with Ptolemy XIII after the Egyptian king had ordered the death of his political enemy Pompey. After a short civil war, Ptolemy XIII was killed and Caesar restored Cleopatra to the throne along with her younger brother Ptolemy XIV. Caesar and Cleopatra also had a more personal relationship, which resulted in Cleopatra giving birth to his son, whom she named Caesarion. While Cleopatra wanted Julius Caesar to name her son as his heir, Caesar named his nephew Octavian instead. After her brother Ptolemy XIV died, she installed Caesarion as her co-regent in Egypt.
When Julius was assassinated in 44 BC, Cleopatra was summoned to meet with Marc Anthony and used all her charms on him in much of the same manner as she had with Caesar. Anthony was one of the men who ruled over Rome after Caesar’s death, alongside Octavian and Marcus Lepidus. By 37 BC Cleopatra and Marc Anthony conducted their relationship like a marriage, despite the fact that Anthony was married to Octavian’s sister, and living in the palace at Alexandria with their three children.
This did not go over very well with the Romans, and the ever-present threat that Caerarion could lay a claim on Julius Caesar’s legacy weighed heavily on Octavian. War soon ensued, and by 30 BC the Roman army advanced on Alexandria. Marc Anthony committed suicide after being told that Cleopatra had died, a deception thought to have been engineered by Cleopatra in order to appease Octavian. After realizing that Octavian planned to dethrone and humiliate her, it is widely believed that Cleopatra committed suicide by coaxing a deadly asp to bite her breast.
ABOUT THE DOLL
Our commemorative doll of this famous Egyptian Queen stands 19” tall and is dressed in a creamy silk gown with hand-beaded belt ornament and collar. Her hair is fixed in a classic style and adorned with a bird-design headdress in gold and blue beads.
All of her features are hand-painted, and her exposed breast shows the fatal snakebite. A small amount of blood and spittle is smeared around her lips.
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