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Cleopatra of Egypt - from History to Myth


Cleopatra of Egypt - From History to Myth

British Museum, London, UK 
April - August, 2001

Field Museum, Chicago, USA
October 2001 - March 2002

The exhibition Cleopatra of Egypt : From History to Myth explored the many faces of this multi-faced woman, her life in Egypt, and her liaisons with the two great Roman Leaders of the day, Julius Caesar and Mark Antony.

Approximately 350 priceless archaeological finds and masterpieces from the great museums of the world were brought together. It included sculptures, coins, metalwork, jewelry, ancient frescoes and mosaics. Objects were on loan from the British Museum and museums in Alexandria, Cairo, Rome, the Vatican, New York, St Petersburg, Naples and more.

Among other objects from Alexandria’s museum came a colossal head of a statue identified by British curator Sally-Ann Ashton as a likeness of Caesarion, son of Cleopatra VIIth and Julius Caesar. This head had been discovered during excavations led by Franck Goddio in collaboration with the Egyptian Supreme Council for Antiquities in 1998 in Alexandria’s Eastern Harbour.