Classical Studies 1000 Lecture 18: TA Notes - WEEK 18

• School: Western University
• Department: Classical Studies
• Course: Classical Studies 1000
• Professor: Christopher Brown

Document Summary

Marcus antonius and cleopatra were allied against octavian at actium (31 bc) Slide: representation of cleopatra in the style of the local tradition. Rulers of egypt in this period are all descended from ptolemy, a general of alexander the great. Ptolemies became the pharaohs of egypt and took on their local traditions and language (this is called acculturation). She became pharaoh in 51 bc (first alone and then she ruled with her younger brothers): the ptolemies married one another as they took over the practice of brother-sister marriage from the egyptian culture. She bore children to both caesar and marcus antonius. As a monarch she was very successful. She was an expert linguist and was the first ptolemy to have known egyptian: she spoke several languages, but not latin. Caesar or marcus antonius would have been in greek. According to plutarch (biographer writing in greek), it was her conversation, not her looks, that was the secret of her success.