DOCUMENT 5.1
Cleopatra of Egypt: From History to Myth, 2001
In 2001 the British Museum organized an exhibition titled “Cleopatra of Egypt: From History to Myth.” Bringing together objects from museums around the world, the exhibition explored Cleopatra’s life, as well as European representations of the Egyptian queen from the Renaissance to the present. These fourteen objects from the original show narrate Cleopatra’s story and date from her lifetime (69–30 B.C.E.) to the eighteenth century. As you examine them, choose one that you feel is particularly interesting. Then use your chosen object as the basis for your answers to the questions below.
Click here to view the objects.
QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER
In what ways does your object enhance your understanding of Cleopatra? How does it reinforce the picture of Cleopatra offered by the other sources presented here? How does it challenge that depiction?
What connection can you make, if any, between the historical Cleopatra and the myth? What light does your object shed on this question?