- Cleopatra Selene II
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This article is about the daughter of Cleopatra VII of Egypt and Roman Triumvir Mark Antony. For the daughter of Ptolemy VIII Physcon and Cleopatra III of Egypt, see Cleopatra Selene I. For other women named Cleopatra, see Cleopatra (disambiguation).
Cleopatra Selene II Queen consort of Numidia
Queen consort of Mauretania
Coin of the ancient kingdom of Mauretania. Juba II of Numidia on the obverse, Cleopatra Selene II on the reverse. Spouse Juba II of Numidia Issue Ptolemy, King of Mauretania
DrusillaFull name Cleopatra Selene House Ptolemaic dynasty Father Mark Antony Mother Cleopatra VII Philopator, Queen of Egypt Born 25 December 40 BC
Alexandria, EgyptDied 5 BC to 6
Caesarea, Kingdom of MauretaniaBurial Royal Mausoleum of Mauretania Cleopatra Selene II (Greek:η Κλεοπάτρα Σελήνη, 25 December 40 BC-anywhere from 9 March 5 BC[1] to 6), also known as Cleopatra VIII of Egypt or Cleopatra VIII was a Ptolemaic Princess and was the only daughter to Greek Ptolemaic queen Cleopatra VII of Egypt and Roman triumvir Mark Antony. She was the fraternal twin of Ptolemaic prince Alexander Helios. Her second name in ancient Greek means "moon", being the counterpart of her twin brother‘s second name Helios, meaning "sun". She was of Greek and Roman heritage. Cleopatra was born, raised and educated in Alexandria, Egypt. In late 34 BC, during the Donations of Alexandria, she was made ruler of Cyrenaica and Libya.[2]
Contents
Early Life
Her parents were defeated by Octavian (future Roman Emperor Caesar Augustus), during a naval battle at Actium, Greece in 31 BC. In 30 BC, her parents committed suicide as Octavian and his army invaded Egypt. Octavian took Cleopatra and her brothers from Egypt to Italy. Octavian celebrated his military triumph in Rome by parading the two orphans in heavy golden chains in the streets. The chains were so heavy that they could not walk. Octavian gave the siblings to Octavia Minor to be raised in her household in Rome. Octavia Minor, who became their guardian, was Octavian's second eldest sister and was their father's former wife.[3]
Marriage
Between 26 BC-20 BC, Augustus arranged for Cleopatra to marry African King Juba II of Numidia in Rome. The Emperor Augustus gave to Cleopatra as a wedding present a huge dowry and she became an ally to Rome. By then her brothers, Alexander Helios and Ptolemy Philadelphus had died, probably from illness. When Cleopatra married Juba, she was the only surviving member of the Ptolemaic dynasty.[4]
Juba and Cleopatra could not return to Numidia as it had been provincialized in 46 BC. The couple was sent to Mauretania, an unorganized territory that needed Roman supervision. They renamed their new capital Caesarea (modern Cherchell, Algeria), in honor of the Emperor.[5] Cleopatra is said to have exercised great influence on policies that Juba created. Through her influence, the Mauretanian Kingdom flourished. Mauretania exported and traded well throughout the Mediterranean. The construction and sculptural projects at Caesarea and at another city Volubilis, were built and display a rich mixture of Ancient Egyptian, Greek and Roman architectural styles.[6]
The children of Cleopatra and Juba were:
- Ptolemy of Mauretania born in ca 10 BC-5 BC [7]
- A daughter of Cleopatra and Juba, whose name has not been recorded, is mentioned in an inscription. It has been suggested that Drusilla of Mauretania was a daughter, but she may have been a granddaughter instead. Drusilla is described as a granddaughter of Antony and Cleopatra, and may have been a daughter of Ptolemy of Mauretania.[7]
Queen of Syria, Zenobia of Palmyra claimed descent from Cleopatra, although this is unlikely.[8]
Historical Evidence
There are few surviving written sources on the life of Cleopatra. Surviving coins and monuments suggest that Cleopatra inherited the iron will and perseverance of the Ptolemaic women. Her various titles on surviving coinage are in Greek: ΒΑΣΙΛΙΣΣΑ ΚΛΕΟΠΑΤΡΑ or ΒΑΣΙΛΙΣΣ ΚΛΕΟΠΑΤΡΑ, which means Queen Cleopatra. These titles were also used on coinage by her late mother. Another title she used on coinage was CΕΛΕNΕ or Selene. [9] Cleopatra seemed to have been religious, patriotic of her Egyptian Greek heritage, though she ignored her Roman heritage. She wanted to retain and continue the Ptolemaic Legacy.
Death
Controversy surrounds Cleopatra's exact date of death. A discovered hoard of the Cleopatra's coins, dated at 17, it has traditionally been believed that Cleopatra was alive to mint them. However, this would mean that Juba married the Cappadocian Princess, Glaphyra during Cleopatra's lifetime. To explain this strange marital problem, historians have supposed some sort of rift between Cleopatra and Juba that was eventually mended after Juba's divorce from Glaphyra. Modern historians dispute the idea that Juba, a thoroughly Romanized King, would have taken a second wife. The argument goes that if Juba married Glaphyra before 4 then his first wife Cleopatra, must have already been dead. (The counterargument can be made that even contemporary client kings with Roman citizenship, like Herod the Great, took multiple wives and that Juba's father had more than one.)
The following epigram by Greek Epigrammatist Crinagoras of Mytilene is considered to be Cleopatra’s eulogy.[10]
- The moon herself grew dark, rising at sunset,
- Covering her suffering in the night,
- Because she saw her beautiful namesake, Selene,
- Breathless, descending to Hades,
- With her she had had the beauty of her light in common,
- And mingled her own darkness with her death.
If this poem is not simply literary license, then astronomical correlation can be used to help pinpoint the date of Cleopatra's death. Lunar eclipses occurred in 9, 8, 5 and 1 BC and 3, 7, 10, 11 and 14. The event in 5 BC most closely resembles the description given in the eulogy, but the date of her death is simply not ascertainable with any certainty.[11]
When Cleopatra died, she was placed in the Royal Mausoleum of Mauretania in modern Algeria east of Caesarea that was built by her and Juba, which is still visible. A fragmentary inscription was dedicated to Juba and Cleopatra, as the King and Queen of Mauretania.
In Fiction
- Cleopatra is mentioned in the novels by Robert Graves, I, Claudius and Claudius the God.
- Cleopatra is a significant character in Wallace Breem's historical novel The Legate's Daughter (1974), Phoenix/Orion Books Ltd. ISBN 0-75381-895-7
- Cleopatra's Daughter by Michelle Moran (2009) tells the story of Cleopatra's early life; from the demise of her parents until her marriage to Juba II of Numidia.
- Lily of the Nile by Stephanie Dray (2011) also follows Cleopatra Selene from the tragic fall of Alexandria to the days before her marriage to Juba II of Numidia.
- Querida Alejandría by María García Esperón (Bogotá 2007: Norma, ISBN 9580498458), a novel in the form of a letter by Cleopatra to the people of Alexandria.
- Cleopatra's Daughter by Andrea Ashton (1979) also tells the story of Cleopatra Selene's early life.
- Cleopatra's Moon by Vicky Alvear Shecter (2011) is a novel for teens about Cleopatra Selene.
- She and her twin appear briefly in the television series Rome.
Ancestry
Ancestors of Cleopatra Selene IISources
The primary modern source, which includes all the ancient material, is D. W. Roller, The World of Juba II and Kleopatra Selene (London 2003).
- Plutarch - Makers of Rome - Mark Antony
- Suetonius - The Lives of the Twelve Caesars - Augustus & Caligula
- Cassius Dio - Roman History
- Encyclopaedia Britannica - Juba II
External links
References
- ^ Roller, The World of Juba II and Kleopatra Selene p. 250
- ^ Roller, The World of Juba II and Kleopatra Selene p. 76–81
- ^ Roller, The World of Juba II and Kleopatra Selene p. 82–85
- ^ Roller, The World of Juba II and Kleopatra Selene p. 84–89
- ^ Roller, The World of Juba II and Kleopatra Selene p. 98–100
- ^ Roller, The World of Juba II and Kleopatra Selene p. 91–162
- ^ a b Cleopatra Selene by Chris Bennett
- ^ Roller, The World of Juba II and Kleopatra Selene p. 244–56
- ^ Roller, The World of Juba II and Kleopatra Selene p. 151–2
- ^ Roller, The World of Juba II and Kleopatra Selene p. 249–51
- ^ Roller, The World of Juba II and Kleopatra Selene, p. 250
Categories:- 40 BC births
- 6 deaths
- Ptolemaic dynasty
- 1st-century BC women
- 1st-century women
- History of Numidia
- Hellenistic Egyptians
- Twin people
- Roman client rulers
- Queens consort
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