Customer Reviews

The Search for Cleopatra

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Bought this book after seeing the TV Cleopatra mini-series. Well written, it moves along nicely without heavy academic footnoting et al that can turn a good read boring.

Almost as fascinating is the rather peculiar debate over Cleopatra's race in the reviews here. One writer erroneously observes that no historical writers ever write who her mother was. Well, actually, most writers have identified her mother as another in the Ptolemy family (intermarriage was the rule rather than the exceptoin among Ptolemy dynasty). The only real question is the identity of her grandmother. And even there the preponderous of evidence is that she was probably Macedonian or Jewish. There are no contemporary descriptions of her as "black" or even dark. Try reading history that does not have a PC ax to grind and you will learn much though it may hinder the silly PC ranting and raving.

Anyway, a good informative read here.

I like the author's philosphy of history: in the first chapter of "The Search for Cleopatra," Foss writes that our picture of the past "is not some absolute of historical truth founded on a mountain of small certain facts." Rather, history "reveals itself in drama, passion, elemental conflict, emblematic events that become the basis for mythologies."

Cleopatra was a fascinating character, a myth in life and death. She was more brilliant than beautiful, a consummate politican and a ruthless leader. She was the mistress of the two most powerful Roman leaders of her era, partly because she wanted her Ptolemaic dynasty to survive and partly because she seems to have been genuinely devoted to her two lovers.

The "Search for Cleopatra" is not a biography as such. Rather, it tells the story of a pivotal time in which Cleopatra played a central role. Foss sketches all of the major protagonists--Julius Caesar, Marc Antony, Octavian and a host of lesser characters--against the background of the Roman civil wars and Cleopatra's skilled but ultimately unsuccessful attempt to come out on top in a very high stakes game.

Was Cleopatra a cruel, calculating woman, a person who did not hesitate to execute her younger brother and sister in order to rule unchallenged? Or was she a loving mother, concerned about the welfare of her children and genuinely in love with Julius Caesar and Marc Antony? As with any complex character, the answer may be "both," and this well-written book does an excellent job of making a powerful woman and a dangerous time a bit more understandable to the modern reader.

If you are interested in the life and times of Cleopatra, you might also want to pick up "Alexandria: City of the Western Mind" by Theodore Vrettos. Vrettos devotes a substantial part of his book to telling the story of Caesar, Antony and Cleopatra, but he also describes how Alexandria transmitted Greek culture to the modern world. Another interesting view of the subject is "Not by a Nose," an essay by Josiah Ober in "What If? 2," which ponders how the world might have been different if Antony and Cleopatra had defeated Octavian at the Battle of Actium.

I just wanted to say that no matter how much people try to create a "revisionist history", you cannot change pure and simple facts. Cleopatra WAS NOT African. I'm sorry to those of you who believe she was, but she wasn't. Like others have said before, she was GREEK. No one is trying to say that many Egyptians weren't black (they were in fact a range of colors), but the Ptolemies were Greek, not Egyptian. The Ptolemies were left over from Alexander's empire and had ruled Egypt since his death. While they adopted many Egyptian customs, they were in thought and deed, Greek. Personally, I don't think it matters what she looked like, the important thing is what she managed to accomplish for so young a queen, especially in the period in which she lived. I would also venture to say that Caesar and Antony loved her for her unique personality, not only for her beauty.

I think that this is a very informative and interesting book. Before I read this book I hardly knew anything about Cleopatra. It was very intersesting to read about the romance and events that happened between Cleopatra and Julius Caesar and between her and Marc Anthony. I really don't see why all of these people are putting so much emphasis on her skin color. None of us have actually seen her so we don't know what she looked like. People should care more about what the author was really trying to talk about: A powerful, captivating woman with a very interseting life. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to know more about an amazing woman. Thanks for reading my review! :)

I think that some of the reviews have missed the point for this book. The real controversy is not Cleopatra's ethnicity, because we have documentation on this that dates to her era. She was a Ptolemy; therefore of Macedonian descent. Study your ancient history and put forth a little effort into some research. From most accounts that I have read, all point to her being extremely proud of that Macedonian heritage. You in the 21st century, believe that you know more about this historical figure, than the writers of the first century. In this, you must agree with me that the information we have now, is inaccurate compared to the relatively recent information that they had. You cannot rewrite history.

Cleopatra would not qualify as "black" because she was not a "woman of color" as some falsely allege. She came from a Dynasty that intermarried with one another. Her ethnicity was Hellenic Macedonian. She and the Dynasty she belonged to spoke Greek. . If there was even a hint that her origins were anything but that of a Hellenic Dynasty who ruled over Egypt then the ancient Greek and Roman writers would have stated as such given they did so with other people who were of "mixed" origins. Plus Cleopatra's family are Greek descendants from Northern Greece and an ancient painting from Vergina, Greece depicts Ptolemy I Soter during a hunt as being fair in coloring. Some ancient writers even claim him the son of King Philip, making the Ptolemiac Dynasty descendants from the Hellenic Argead Dynasty of whom the Macedonian royal family claimed descendant from. Its only been in modern history that this myth about Cleopatra being "black or mixed race" came about. This theory originated in the 16th century - that is thousands of years and centuries after Cleopatra's death. Most writers who question her heritage are not even ancient writers or historians but modern revisionists. Cleopatra's paternal grandmother was Cleopatra IV, her paternal/maternal grandfather's(Ptolemy IX) sister. Cleopatra's maternal grandmother was Cleopatra Selena, again the sister of her paternal/maternal grandfather's(Ptolemy IX) AND the sister of her paternal grandmother(Cleopatar IV). Making Cleopatra's paternal grandmother(Cleopatar IV), maternal grandmother(Cleopatra Selena) and paternal/maternal grandfather(Ptolemy IX) all brother and sisters, in other words the brother had children with both of his sisters. The parents of Cleopatra VII's father were Ptolemy IX and Cleopatra IV and the parents of Cleopatra's mother were Ptolemy IX and Cleopatra Selena: making Cleopatra VII's parents both brother and sister and cousins all at the same time. This was a common practice among the Ptolemeis, marrying their sisters, bothers, cousins, aunts, uncles, parents. The Ptolemies were not liked by native Egyptians who they considered "foreigner rulers". In fact Cleopatra's father survived two assassination attempts, this was the reason why they kept to themselves and married amongst each other, they distrusted foreigners. Which why the likelihood of Cleopatra's grandmother being anyone outside the Ptolemaic family tree, ie. native Egyptian, Nubian, Hebrew or anything else is zero given the xenophobic views the Ptolemies.

This is not the best, nor the worse book on Cleopatra. The author gives some insights on Cleopatra that have been written before. Kind of a "been there, done that" kind of thing. But for a new reader to the subject this would be a good book to start with. As to the debate about her color...many people in the Med. are of color, aka have an olive skin tone. Just because she was Greek doesn't mean she was blonde and blue eyed. Many people from Greece and from Italy were/are even this complexion (olive/tan). The Jews at this time were not all white either. Many ended up white because of the mixing that occurred in other countries (i.e. slavic countries and elsewhere). And lets not forget that there are Jewish people all through the world, so some were probably of mixed origin. I definately think she was not pure white, but rather of olive complexion as many Greeks were. If she did have some Egyptian blood in her that too would have added to a tinge in her skin tone.

I thought this book was excellent because it covers so many topics. It also had a differant view of the queen than I've usually seen. As far as the race issue is concerned, Cleopatra was not black or Roman or Egyptian, but pure Macedonian Greek. So it is most likely she was pale skinned and had blond hair and green eyes.

First, about the book itself---it provides a good introduction and platform of 'the life and times of Cleopatra'---an extraordinary woman who lived in turbulent, challenging times.

Second, the 'woman of color' issue: Cleopatra was not black, nor even likely of a 'mixed' race. The Ptolemies, Macedonian Greeks by descent, took up the Egyptian Pharaonic custom of royal incestuous marrige. They were fanatic about their bloodlines. The fact that Cleopatra's maternal grandmother's lineage is not documented, nor her mother's, does not automatically mean (as some people seem to wish) that they were black. They could have been anything---if not also Macedonian, the most likely scenario, then more probably Jewish than black, as Hebrew was one of the languages Cleopatra spoke, and Alexandria was 40% Jewish at the time. This obsession to prove that Cleopatra was black is rather pathetic, and historically unsound. The fact that the ancient Egyptians were of mixed race has nothing to do with Cleopatra, who did not have a drop of Egyptian blood.

I thought this book was VERY good gave an insight veiw oh who cleopatra was and her descendants who were not of the black skin colour. Cleopatra was of Egyptian and Roman Decsent. Alexander was where her line started The Phtolomey Dynasty. Egyptians were NOT black people they had the skin colour of a normal red skin Arab. and in Cleopatras Days in Alexandria most people would have been a "Lialy white skin" because alexandria was a greek city. So my friend from OHIO you "Get over it" .