The long-lost tomb of Antony and Cleopatra, the burial crypt of
Mark Antony
Marcus Antonius (14 January 1 August 30 BC), commonly known in English as Mark Antony, was a Roman politician and general who played a critical role in the transformation of the Roman Republic from a constitutional republic into the autoc ...
and
Cleopatra VII
Cleopatra VII Philopator ( grc-gre, Κλεοπάτρα Φιλοπάτωρ}, "Cleopatra the father-beloved"; 69 BC10 August 30 BC) was Queen of the Ptolemaic Kingdom of Egypt from 51 to 30 BC, and its last active ruler.She was also a ...
, from 30 BC, remains undiscovered somewhere near
Alexandria
Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandria ...
,
Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...
. According to historians
Suetonius
Gaius Suetonius Tranquillus (), commonly referred to as Suetonius ( ; c. AD 69 – after AD 122), was a Roman historian who wrote during the early Imperial era of the Roman Empire.
His most important surviving work is a set of biographies ...
and
Plutarch
Plutarch (; grc-gre, Πλούταρχος, ''Ploútarchos''; ; – after AD 119) was a Greek Middle Platonist philosopher, historian, biographer, essayist, and priest at the Temple of Apollo in Delphi. He is known primarily for his ''P ...
, the Roman leader
Octavian
Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian, was the first Roman emperor; he reigned from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. He is known for being the founder of the Roman Pri ...
(later renamed Augustus) permitted their burial together after he had defeated them.
Their surviving children were taken to Rome, to be raised as Roman citizens.
Shakespeare
William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...
, inspired by Plutarch, briefly alludes to this common entombment in the voice of his character Caesar (Octavian), in the last verses of his play ''
Antony and Cleopatra'' (Act V, scene II):
Reports in 2008 and 2009 focused on an announcement by the noted
Egyptologist
Egyptology (from ''Egypt'' and Greek , '' -logia''; ar, علم المصريات) is the study of ancient Egyptian history, language, literature, religion, architecture and art from the 5th millennium BC until the end of its native religious ...
Zahi Hawass
Zahi Abass Hawass ( ar, زاهي حواس; born May 28, 1947) is an Egyptian archaeologist, Egyptologist, and former Minister of State for Antiquities Affairs, serving twice. He has also worked at archaeological sites in the Nile Delta, the Wes ...
that he might find the tomb in
Taposiris Magna
Taposiris Magna is a city established by Pharaoh Ptolemy II Philadelphus between 280 and 270 BC. The name means "great tomb of Osiris", which Plutarch identifies with an Egyptian temple in the city.
After Alexander the Great conquered Egypt in 3 ...
, a temple to
Osiris
Osiris (, from Egyptian ''wsjr'', cop, ⲟⲩⲥⲓⲣⲉ , ; Phoenician: 𐤀𐤎𐤓, romanized: ʾsr) is the god of fertility, agriculture, the afterlife, the dead, resurrection, life, and vegetation in ancient Egyptian religion. He was ...
, located west of
Alexandria
Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandria ...
,
Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...
. Excavations carried out by
Kathleen Martínez
Kathleen Teresa Martínez Berry (born 1966) is a Dominican lawyer, archaeologist, and diplomat, best known for her work since 2005 in the search for the tomb of Cleopatra in the Taposiris Magna temple in Egypt. She heads the Egyptian-Dominican m ...
have yielded ten mummies in 27 tombs of Egyptian nobles, as well as coins bearing images of Cleopatra and carvings showing the two in an embrace. So far, the tomb itself remains elusive, but the temple excavations continue, with additional sites below the surface identified using
ground-penetrating radar
Ground-penetrating radar (GPR) is a Geophysics, geophysical method that uses radar pulses to Geophysical imaging, image the subsurface. It is a non-intrusive method of surveying the sub-surface to investigate underground utilities such as concrete, ...
in 2011.
In January 2019, controversy arose over the possibility that the discovery of the tombs was imminent, attributed to remarks by Zahi Hawass at a conference at the
University of Palermo
The University of Palermo ( it, Università degli Studi di Palermo) is a university located in Palermo, Italy, and founded in 1806. It is organized in 12 Faculties.
History
The University of Palermo was officially founded in 1806, although its ...
. The Egyptologist denied the news in an article in the newspaper ''
Al-Ahram'', affirming that the thesis that the tombs were in Taposiris Magna was not his but that of Kathleen Martínez, and that he did not believe Martínez' hypothesis because "the Egyptians never buried inside a temple", given that "the temples were for worshiping, and this was for the goddess Isis. It is therefore unlikely that Cleopatra was buried there."
In early November 2022 the team of archaeologists lead by Martínez identified a 1,300 meter long tunnel in the area of the temple of Taposiris Magna, west of Alexandria, that could lead to Cleopatra's tomb.
The search seeks to find Antony's mummy as well, despite Plutarch's statement that Antony was cremated: "After Cleopatra had heard this, in the first place, she begged Caesar that she might be permitted to pour libations for Antony; and when the request was granted, she had herself carried to the tomb, and embracing the urn which held his ashes."
See also
*
Early life of Cleopatra
The early life of Cleopatra VII () Theodore Cressy Skeat, in , uses historical data to calculate the death of Cleopatra as having occurred on 12 August 30 BC. provides the same date as Skeat, while tepidly support this, saying it occurred '' c ...
*
Reign of Cleopatra
The reign of Cleopatra VII of the Ptolemaic Kingdom of Egypt began with the death of her father, Ptolemy XII Auletes, by March 51 BC. It ended with her suicide in August 30 BC, which also marked the conclusion of the Hellenistic period an ...
*
Death of Cleopatra
The death of Cleopatra VII, the last ruler of Ptolemaic Egypt, occurred on either 10 or 12 August, 30 BC, in Alexandria, when she was 39 years old. According to popular belief, Cleopatra killed herself by allowing an asp (Egyptian ...
* ''
Robbing Cleopatra's Tomb
''Robbing Cleopatra's Tomb'' (french: Cléopâtre, literally ''Cleopatra'') was an 1899 short film, short silent film directed by Georges Méliès. One of the earliest horror films ever made, it is about resurrection, resurrecting the mummy of Cle ...
'', a short silent film
References
{{Mausoleums in Egypt
Cleopatra
Mark Antony
Mausoleums in Egypt
Monuments and memorials to women
Tombs of ancient Egypt