Death of Cleopatra

The Death of Cleopatra by Jean-André Rixens, 1874

The death of Cleopatra, the last reigning ruler of Ptolemaic Egypt, occurred on August 12, 30 BC in Alexandria, when she was 39 years old. According to a popular belief, introduced by Plutarch, Cleopatra committed suicide by an asp bite. In other versions Cleopatra either poisoned herself by a toxic ointment or was murdered.[1] The exact date of Cleopatra's death was unknown for a long time, since there is no surviving record of even the approximate date.[2] Theodore Cressy Skeat deduced that her death occurred on August 12, 30 BC on the basis of contemporary records of fixed events.[2] Cleopatra's death effectively ended the war between Octavian and Mark Antony, where Cleopatra aligned herself with Antony.

Primary sources

According to Plutarch's Life of Antony, after the Battle of Actium Antony and Cleopatra continued their resistance against Octavian in Alexandria. As the situation became increasingly desperate, Antony committed suicide, while Octavian occupied Alexandria to take Cleopatra prisoner for his triumphal procession. According to Life of Antony, as Octavian tried to take Cleopatra alive, she wrested control of her life by suicide.[3] According to Cleopatra's personal physician Olympos, cited by Plutarch, Cleopatra died either from an asp bite or by applying a toxic ointment.[1] Strabo believed that Cleopatra committed suicide either by asp bite or poisonious ointment.[4] Other historians, like Florus and Velleius Paterculus supported the asp bite version.[5] According to Cassius Dio, although small punctures on Cleopatra's arm were found, "no one knows for sure how she died".[6] Roman physician Galen narrated a version where Cleopatra bit her arm and introduced venom there brought to her in a container.[7]

Murder theory

According to History of Toxicology and Environmental Health, "the preponderance of evidence seems to suggest that rather than committing suicide with an asp, she was murdered" and that "Octavian quite possibly had her killed with a poisonious concoction".[8] This version of political killing was also supported by other authors.[1] This, however, contradicts the majority of primary sources, reporting her suicide.[9]

References

  1. 1 2 3 William J Maloney (2010). "The Death Of Cleopatra, A Medical Analysis Of The Theory Of Suicide By Naja Haje" (PDF). WebmedCentral. Retrieved 8 May 2017.
  2. 1 2 T. C. Skeat (1953). "The Last Days of Cleopatra : A Chronological Problem". The Journal of Roman Studies. 43 (1-2): 98–100. doi:10.2307/297786.
  3. ↑ Jones, Prudence (2006). Cleopatra: A Sourcebook. University of Oklahoma Press. p. 180. ISBN 0-8061-3741-X.
  4. ↑ Jones 2006, p. 197.
  5. ↑ Jones 2006, pp. 189-190.
  6. ↑ Jones 2006, p. 195.
  7. ↑ Jones 2006, pp. 196-197.
  8. ↑ Philip Wexler, ed. (2014). History of Toxicology and Environmental Health: Toxicology in Antiquity. 1. Academic Press. pp. 19–20. ISBN 0128004630.
  9. ↑ Jones 2006, pp. 180-201.
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