The Washington herald., 1913-05-18
NOT ONE BUT MANY
CLEOPATRAS in EGYPT
Mummy Said to Be that of the Serpent of the Nile
Has Been Found Entire Family of the Name
of Cleopatra Once Lived-This May Not Be
Titian-haired Woman of History.

The statement. in a newspaper dispatch
from Egypt, that the mummy of Cleo
patra has been found, is at least inter
esting, inasmuch as 1t was not hitherto
known whether or not the body of tha
celebrated queen and courtesan was pre-
served by embalming or not. But the re
port demands verification much mor'
than ordinarily positive, to determin.
identity, for the reason that there wcrt
quite a number of Cleopatras, several
Of whom were famous in their day.
The first of these royal ladies was thl
wife of Philip of Macedon. father of that
Alexander, called the great, who found
ed, planned, and started the building
of Alexandria manned after himself, the
capital of Egypt, where the Serpent d
the Nile dwelled and ruled three centuries
later. To mention an incidental fact few
people know, one of the Serpents lovers,
Mark Antony, became Through the mar
rage of his daughter, Antonia) the great
great-grandfather of the monster Nero,
who set fire to Rome.
The first Cleopatra was a daughter of
Attalus, one OF the generals of Philip,
the Macedonian conqueror, who, his pas
hand in marriage. True, he already had
a wife, Olympias: but so little did this
circumstance interfere with his plans
that the nuptials were celebrated i'll the
very palace where Olympias was living,
her son, Alexander, being present. The
festivities were broken up by drunken
row, a consequence of which was that
the young man and his mother haStlly ce-
parted from the country.
exceedingly
proud and high-spirited woman. The
daughter of Neoptolemus, King of Epirus,
she came of family that traced its pedl-
gree to Achilles So she nursed her
wrath and bided her time for revenge,
which was not very long in coming.
Philip was murdered, her son Alexander
took up the reins of government in Mace
donia, and Cleopatra, placed at her mer-
cy. was compelled by her TO commit sui
eide
But Oiympias had by Philip a daughter
of her own named Cleopatra, very beau
tiful girl. So remarkable were her at
fractions that il was said that every man
she met fell in love with her, and when
her brother Alexander died suddenly after
a banquet in the city of Babylon 1923 Is.
c.. his generals disputed for the posses
sion Of her person. In the midst of the
quarrel. one of them. AntigonuS, whom
she had spurned, slew her in mt of rage
After the death of Alexander, the en-
pire he had won with the sword, which
comprised half the known world, was
divided up among his generals, one of
whom, named Ptolemy. was sent as gov
ernor to Egypt. He was the son of a
Macedonian nobleman named Lagus. ard
had been educated at the court of Philip.
A bold and experienced soldier, he rapidly
extended his satrapy by conquest, and
few years later declared himself king.
thus founding a dynasty which was
destined to hold the throne of the Pha-
IA ohs for nearly 800 years. terminating
only with the death of the last and most
celebrated of all the CleOpatras.
II should be understood that Cleopatra
was a favcrite name with the PtOlemies;
and marriages, for dynastic reasons, be-
ing kept strictly within the limits of the
family. it was handed down from gen. |
Grafton to generation. Several Cleopatras |
occupied the throne of Egypt |
al one time or another. as will presently /
he seen. and controlled affairs with an |
iron rule which paused not at ruthless |
massacre. nor yet at the murder OF their |
nearest relatives. Cleopatra, great |
of the Serpent of the Nile, |
was accused of poisoning her mother be
fore she herself was put 10 death by !
her younger son. PtOlemy Alexander.
connected with, that of the PtOlemies.
The fourth of the line killed his wife.
mis- sister. his brother. and. it was
charged. his mother. The seventh, sur
named the "Rloated." murdered his son
and an infant nephew. The tenth, who
was the Serpents own father. authorized
he execution of his Oldest daughter.
RereniCe Finally. the Serpent herself,
As history tells US poisoned her younger
brother. and persuaded Marc Antony
O procure the assassination Of her sis
ter. Arsinoe But. lest one he too cap
.ious. it should be remembered that
fashions in morals were different in those
laws and that it was deemed a matter
# course to remove" anybody who
night happen to be in ones way. If
IN enemy tell into ones power the thing
O do was to starve him to death, put
,ut his eyes. or mutilste him. Few per
ons of distinction died from natural
auses.
The first Ptolemy died at eighty-four
ears of age. and was succeeded by his
on Ptolemy Philadelphus. who encour-
ged commerce and the liberal arts. By
two powerful fleets, one in
he Mediterranean and the other in the
Red Sea, he made Egypt the mart OF
he world. His standing army COM
rised 100000 foot soldiers. 1000 cavalry,
~ elephants and 1000 armed chariots |
lie was the richest monarch of his age,
nd when ne died he left in his treasury
$1,000 Egyptian talents, equivalent TO
l. 0Oc, 100000 of our money.
This, however. is not story of the
'tolemy dynasty but of the Cleopatras.
he wife of the fifth PtoIemy bore that
anne, and so likewise did the spouse of
ne sixth of the line. The latter king
-as succeeded on the throne by his
rother, Ptolemy the "EviI-doer," who
ras otherwise known as the "Bloated."
ecause of a physical popularity due TO
The Bloated, having mar
ed the newly widowed queen, cele-
rated the wedding day by numbering
er infant son. his nephew, in her arms
alter on he divorced her and took to
ife her daughter Cleopatra. Then, for
ere amusement, he organized a series
: massacres which literally depopulated
lexandria, most Of the surviving citi-
ms seeking refuge in neighboring coun-
les: and finally. as a result of a re-
elton, he was driven into exile.
The divorced Cleopatra then assembled
lie throne which was occupied in later
ears by her daughter Cleopatra, jointly
it'll the latter's son. known as Ptolemy
the Bean, on account of a peculiar. ex-
essence on his nose. The wife of Ptol- |
ny of the Bean was also called Cleo
ltra, and when she became his widow
lie raised her son, Alexander Ptolemy,
the rulership which she shared with
m. He manifested his filial apprecia-I
On by putting her to death.
But ii is at this stage that the story
comes really interesting, for present.
We find an illegitimate son of Ptolemy