Cleopatra, a Star with Staying Power

By Suzanne Singer
January 13, 2011

Legendary Queen Cleopatra—the last pharaoh of Egypt, renowned beauty, shrewd politician, love interest of Julius Caesar and Mark Antony, subject of Shakespeare—continues to fascinate the Western world.

On eBay, a search for "Cleopatra" yields over 10,000 listings, ranging from Cleopatra Halloween costumes to Cleopatra jewelry, books, Cleopatra movie memorabilia and even Barbies in Queen Cleopatra's image.

Cleopatra items

Cleopatra: The Search for the Last Queen of Egypt, by Zahi Hawass and Franck Goddio; coin with image of Cleopatra; book cover; papyrus signed by Cleopatra (coin and papyrus photos by Lisa Godfrey The Franklin Institute)

Queen Cleopatra has been the subject of countless books and movies. Here, Elizabeth Taylor as Cleopatra, the titular Queen of Egypt, in the 1963 film, "Cleopatra'"(Photo by Silver Screen Collection/Archive Photos/Getty Images) and the cover of Cleopatra: A Life, a new book by Stacy Schiff.

In entertainment and media, the 1963 movie, "Cleopatra," starring Elizabeth Taylor in the title role, remains iconic. But a true star has staying power, and Cleopatra has proven just that. In 2010 alone, the Egyptian queen had three books written about her: Cleopatra: A Life by Stacy Schiff (the basis of which there are rumors of a 3D movie starring Angelina Jolie), Antony and Cleopatra by Adrian Keith Goldsworthy and Cleopatra: The Search for the Last Queen of Egypt by Zahi Hawass and Franck Goddio. The authors of the latter book, who have spent years studying the history of Cleopatra, are Egypt’s pre-eminent archaeologist and Secretary General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities (Zahi Hawass) and French underwater archaeologist and director of the European Institute for Underwater Archaeology (Franck Goddio). They have also staged an exhibition of their work, which takes visitors through the present-day study of Cleopatra’s history and search for her tomb. Zahi Hawass and Franck Goddio's exhibition just closed at the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia and will open at the Cincinnati Museum Center on February 18.

We spoke to David Silverman, guest curator of "Cleopatra: The Search for the Last Queen of Egypt," about Queen Cleopatra's endless allure.

The Inside Source: Why focus on a Queen Cleopatra exhibit now?

David Silverman: Cleopatra is always a fascinating character, and interest in her has survived the millennia since her death. While many of the details of her life are known, mysteries about her still persist. Despite the survival of ancient sources that provide some information, most of the authors of these texts wrote after she died, and these writers were primarily Roman. [Cleopatra was Greek, and a member of the royal family which ruled Egypt.] At this time, new information has come to light through the work of two researchers, Franck Goddio and Zahi Hawass. The former has brought underwater archaeology to Egypt and, over the past 20 years, has searched three areas in Egypt to learn more about Cleopatra. The latter has begun work at a new site near Alexandria, the capital city of Egypt during Cleopatra's time. The results of these excavations have revealed more information about this fascinating woman, suggesting that the newly discovered artifacts might serve well in telling the story of Cleopatra, with all of the new data, through the work of these two scholars.

The Inside Source: What is the greatest legacy that Queen Cleopatra left us?

David Silverman: Cleopatra has left us the knowledge that she was more than the myth about her that has been told and retold over the last 2000 years. A highly educated woman, she could hold her own against some of the most powerful men of that time, or, in fact, any time. Her abilities at statesmanship, administration, governing, and international relations made her amongst the most formidable leaders of the time.

The Inside Source: Why do you think Queen Cleopatra has been the subject of so many pieces of pop culture?

David Silverman: Cleopatra holds a special place in history as the last queen of ancient Egypt, a civilization that had marked well more than 3000 years before she began her rule. She also was one of the very few women of the ancient past to have had myths, stories, and reports written about her for centuries after her death. These texts, whether accurate or not, formed the basis of the more imaginative versions that would follow. Plays, poems, paintings, and sculpture of and about her continued and made her into such an iconic figure.

The Inside Source: Cleopatra is believed to have been a great beauty. Is there any evidence available of Cleopatra's beauty practices and Cleopatra's style of dress?

David Silverman: Records of the time do not preserve any of her beauty secrets, but women of the time period did use moisturizing creams and a variety of different makeups, including lip color and eye liner. Hairstyles of Cleopatra, as seen on coins and statuary, show her in the mode of the day, with a band across the top and a bun at the back, or more loosely, falling in curls, but often with a diadem holding three ureaus cobras. Dresses on the figures of the time seem to be fashioned from clingy, pleated fabric draped over the body, tied at the right above the bust and cascading over the right shoulder.

You, too can channel your inner Egyptian Queen with these Cleopatra-inspired items from eBay, where sales of eBay auction items with the online listing term "Cleopatra" are up 50 percent in a recent 30-day period (12/8/10-1/6/11) vs. a 30-day period six months prior.