Cleopatra is a cultural phenomenon; you would be hard-pressed to find anyone who has not at least heard her name.  There are movies, plays, songs and (of course) books about her life, but I’m only focusing on one of these mediums: books.  How is Cleopatra portrayed in historical fiction and just how accurate are these portrayals?

First, we have to take a look at the basics of her life.  Cleopatra VII Philopator (Father-Lover) was the last pharaoh of ancient Egypt in most people’s eyes.  She was, however, part of the Greek Ptolemaic dynasty and the last Egyptian pharaohs had been long dead by her time.  It is said she was fluent in nine languages, including Egyptian, which endeared her to the native Egyptian population the typically Greek-speaking Ptolemies ruled over.

Cleopatra, as was Egyptian tradition, ruled jointly with her father and later her two brothers in the typical brother-sister marriages.  Why?  According to Egyptian tradition, it was the royal women that held the power to legitimize the males.  In addition to that, nearly all of the gods were married to their siblings.  Isis and Osiris, Set and Nepthys, Nut and Geb.  And were the pharaohs not the sons of gods?  Well, that was the theory anyway. Continue reading →