in the decisions she would make as the months, weeks, and days ticked away toward the end of the Ptolemaic Dynasty.
I placed my Egyptian coins on the table and walked toward the Bibleotheca Alexandrina, a stunning (to my relief) piece of architecture that shines with modernity, a slanted discus of a glass roof on top of eleven floors, the outside wall with the letters of 120 languages, restoring in a sense the ancient library of Alexandria, which some ancient and present historians claim was burned to the ground when Julius Caesar set fire to the fleet in the harbor during the Alexandrian War; however, there is not credible evidence to back such a charge since the distance of the library from the docks and its solid construction would have allowed only its collection of books to burn if half of Alexandria had burned with it, and that never happened. The destruction of the library no doubt occurred over many years, but exactly what happened to it, we will never know. 4
Now, however, a great library has been resurrected in Alexandria. Some $3.5 million and seventeen years went into building the modern library, which houses an incredible eight million books from many nations, including English-language books on the histories of Egypt and Rome, in which I could review the facts of history that set up Cleopatraâs birth, her reign, and her death. I paid my entrance fee and set out in search of Cleopatraâs past.
As I perused the shelves of the library, it was abundantly clear that the history of Cleopatra VII, a queen whose name is known the world over, hardly garners more than a fraction of space among the tomes written of the Egyptian past. Many hundreds of years preceded the queenâs few decades in time, and the story of man in Egypt before her arrival is extensive. Who Cleopatra is didnât start with her birth or what she experienced in her childhood. Understanding anyone begins with the personâs family history and the culture he or she is part of. Cleopatra was the last ruler in the long line of pharaohs descended from the Macedonian region of Greece and the recipient of generations of Ptolemaic experience and wisdom. Her âmodern worldâ began with Alexander the Greatâs conquering of Egypt and the placement of her direct relative and Alexanderâs right-hand man, Ptolemy I, on the throne of Egypt as the first of the Ptolemaic pharaohs. Alexander, the highly aggressive, successful, and gregarious general, gave his name to the great future city of Alexandria, waved his sword above the still-untouched acreage, and envisioned a grand capital, one brought to life by Ptolemy. Sadly, Alexander never again set foot in the future spectacular city that bore his name; only his stolen body was carried back by Ptolemy I to rest temporarily in a marble tomb in Egypt before vanishing forever intooblivion. Alexander, who saw himself as the physical embodiment of the great warrior Achilles, the hero of his beloved Iliad , Homerâs grand epic poem of the Trojan War, set for himself high standards of bravery, honor, and achievement. These were grandiose aims for a mere mortal, but Alexander can certainly be admired for the level of attainment he achieved as a âgood king and a mighty warrior.â 1
A basic understanding of the history of Macedonia is useful since it is out of this milieu that the Ptolemaic Dynasty emerged, along with its history, both cultural and military, that instructed the line of pharaohs down to the very last one. The history of earlier Egypt certainly affected the choices the Ptolemies made to control their vast domain as conquerors. While invaders may be adept at making use of certain aspects of the conquered culture and religion to their advantage (to retain control and to build their wealth), it is quite evident in history that the winner makes the rules and the losers go along with the program if they want to survive.
At the time of the birth of Alexanderâs
I placed my Egyptian coins on the table and walked toward the Bibleotheca Alexandrina, a stunning (to my relief) piece of architecture that shines with modernity, a slanted discus of a glass roof on top of eleven floors, the outside wall with the letters of 120 languages, restoring in a sense the ancient library of Alexandria, which some ancient and present historians claim was burned to the ground when Julius Caesar set fire to the fleet in the harbor during the Alexandrian War; however, there is not credible evidence to back such a charge since the distance of the library from the docks and its solid construction would have allowed only its collection of books to burn if half of Alexandria had burned with it, and that never happened. The destruction of the library no doubt occurred over many years, but exactly what happened to it, we will never know. 4
Now, however, a great library has been resurrected in Alexandria. Some $3.5 million and seventeen years went into building the modern library, which houses an incredible eight million books from many nations, including English-language books on the histories of Egypt and Rome, in which I could review the facts of history that set up Cleopatraâs birth, her reign, and her death. I paid my entrance fee and set out in search of Cleopatraâs past.
As I perused the shelves of the library, it was abundantly clear that the history of Cleopatra VII, a queen whose name is known the world over, hardly garners more than a fraction of space among the tomes written of the Egyptian past. Many hundreds of years preceded the queenâs few decades in time, and the story of man in Egypt before her arrival is extensive. Who Cleopatra is didnât start with her birth or what she experienced in her childhood. Understanding anyone begins with the personâs family history and the culture he or she is part of. Cleopatra was the last ruler in the long line of pharaohs descended from the Macedonian region of Greece and the recipient of generations of Ptolemaic experience and wisdom. Her âmodern worldâ began with Alexander the Greatâs conquering of Egypt and the placement of her direct relative and Alexanderâs right-hand man, Ptolemy I, on the throne of Egypt as the first of the Ptolemaic pharaohs. Alexander, the highly aggressive, successful, and gregarious general, gave his name to the great future city of Alexandria, waved his sword above the still-untouched acreage, and envisioned a grand capital, one brought to life by Ptolemy. Sadly, Alexander never again set foot in the future spectacular city that bore his name; only his stolen body was carried back by Ptolemy I to rest temporarily in a marble tomb in Egypt before vanishing forever intooblivion. Alexander, who saw himself as the physical embodiment of the great warrior Achilles, the hero of his beloved Iliad , Homerâs grand epic poem of the Trojan War, set for himself high standards of bravery, honor, and achievement. These were grandiose aims for a mere mortal, but Alexander can certainly be admired for the level of attainment he achieved as a âgood king and a mighty warrior.â 1
A basic understanding of the history of Macedonia is useful since it is out of this milieu that the Ptolemaic Dynasty emerged, along with its history, both cultural and military, that instructed the line of pharaohs down to the very last one. The history of earlier Egypt certainly affected the choices the Ptolemies made to control their vast domain as conquerors. While invaders may be adept at making use of certain aspects of the conquered culture and religion to their advantage (to retain control and to build their wealth), it is quite evident in history that the winner makes the rules and the losers go along with the program if they want to survive.
At the time of the birth of Alexanderâs
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