Cleopatra: an Age-Old Beauty Questioned

Cleopatra has been regarded as the goddess of beauty and Hollywood has always portrayed her as a beautiful queen. But a recent discovery reveals something else.

A 2,000 year old silver coin discovered in a bank vault depicts the Egyptian queen with a shallow forehead, long and pointed nose, narrow lips and pointy chin. On the reverse side of the coin, Mark Antony was depicted as having bulging eyes, big hooked nose, and a thick neck. The Cleopatra and Mark Antony piece was discovered during research in preparation for a new museum. The coin, which is about 18mm wide, is a denarius dating back to 32 BC. Though not really rare, the coin has been kept hidden in a bank for the last 85 years. It will now be shown to the public for the first time as part of an exhibition.

One side of the coin showed Mark Antony's head with the caption "Antoni Armenia devicta" meaning "For Antony, Armenia having been vanquished." On Cleopatra's side of the coin were the words "Cleopatra Reginae regum filiorumque regum." This means "For Cleopatra, Queen of kings and of the children of kings," or perhaps "Queen of kings and of her children who are kings." The silver coin would have been issued by the mint of Mark Antony and would, consequently, have been made by someone who was familiar with the couple.

The homely images suggest that previous descriptions exaggerated the beauty of the ill-fated couple. The popular visualization of Cleopatra has always been that of a beautiful queen loved by Roman politicians and generals. Modern depictions of the queen characterized her as a great beauty. Cleopatra was described by Roman writers as intelligent, charismatic and having a seductive voice. Antony was also depicted as a sex symbol.

Historians have disagreed for centuries over Cleopatra's true beauty. One historian wrote of her surpassing beauty and being the most striking in the prime of her youth. But other historians suggest otherwise and assert that she was not as striking as legend had portrayed her, indicating only that she had an irresistible charm, had a sweetness in her voice, and her tongue was likened to a stringed instrument. There were others though who have claimed she was short, frumpy and had denture problems.

Regardless of her physical features, Cleopatra's appeal had a big impact on Roman history. In 48 B.C., she seduced Julius Caesar, Rome's first emperor, who was 30 years older than her. They had a son. Years later, she had an affair with Antony, which ended in tragedy. Antony was a Roman general and politician who was a supporter of Julius Caesar's dictatorship. He was known to have a love of wine, women and song. Though married, he and Cleopatra had an affair. They had three children. In 31 B.C., Cleopatra and Antony both committed suicide after the latter was defeated by Octavian, who was next in line to the emperor's throne. Legend has it that Cleopatra chose to die through an asp's bite.