12 - 18 July 2001
Issue No.542
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Al-Ahram Weekly Online 12 - 18 July 2001 Issue No.542 |
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Limelight
Cleopatra--Queen of Hearts
London, the ever-beautiful capital of Great Britain, pride of the Western World, beneath whose famous Abbey grounds lay the great among the greats - "where ships, towers, domes, theatres and temples lie", where royalty is sacrosanct, and monarchs rule by divine right; this very same London town has a new queen this summer. Cleopatra is her name.
At the special exhibit of the British Museum (April 12 - August 26) the immortal queen holds court.
Tens of thousands of tourists push and shove their way to the museum's 'Great Court' for a glimpse of Her Majesty. As the seekers of history and romance head towards the imaginary shores of the Mediterranean, they pass through immense white walls and domed glass ceilings, while sounds of distant drums fill the air. Celestial voices and strains of exotic sitars accompany them on their spiral climb to the gates of ancient Alexandria, "city of dreams", pearl of the Mediterranean, capital of ancient Egypt.
There, once again, she bewitches and bewilders her royal subjects. Much has been written in the world press about the contents and revelations of the exhibit - "Cleopatra: From History to Myth". Lectures, debates, arguments, and questions, forever pursue the great queen. "Was she fat or ugly?", "Raving beauty or beaky-nosed witch?". It is baffling that they seem to focus on such trivialities as the colour of her hair, or the shape of her nose. What matters if the queen were light or dark, young or old, slender or stout? What matters if her nose were hooked, her chin protruding? The heart of the matter seems to have eluded them. Besides, how can we gauge, today, the standards of beauty of her time? History and myth have mingled together to produce a lasting symbol of glory and glamour, that has proved mightier than both. The passionate and tragic element of her life has captured the imagination of many a historian, artist, poet, and dramatist. Shakespeare wrote Antony and Cleopatra, Victorien Sardou wrote Cleopatra, John Dryden wrote All for Love, and Bernard Shaw wrote Cesar and Cleopatra. Hollywood portrayed her as the haunting Theda Bara in 1914, the stylish Claudette Colbert in 1934, the kittenish Vivien Leigh in 1946, and the ravishing Elizabeth Taylor in 1963. She is all of them. She will have many more faces in the third millennium. Egypt's last queen is the desirable beauty of every age, regardless of her physical attributes. Her magic, forever casts its spell, as history's greatest queen of romance.
Susan Walker, curator of the exhibit has herself been busy defending the queen's reputation, as well she should. Her response to attacks on Her Majesty was: "Dwelling on Cleopatra's physical beauty, misses the point". That is the understatement of the century.
Examining 'History and Myth', some historic facts are indisputable.
Certainly Cleopatra VII (circa 69 -30 BC), divine goddess, sat on Egypt's gilded throne for almost 20 years until her death, probably by the bite of an asp. Though 'myth' implies fallacy, she most certainly has her place reserved in the realm of fantasy. Yet she defies both historic documentation and mythical interpretation. The exhibit of the British Museum is credited with displaying ten new images, in busts and statues of the queen, only recently identified during research in preparation for this exhibit.
As Cleopatra in 1963
Artefacts inspired by the queen, include ceramics, jewelry, and early watches. The catalogue shows nearly 400 images of her, gathered by the museum from three continents and two millennia, and also contains essays, and a papyrus with Cleopatra's personal authorization. These recent discoveries are the source of the present furor concerning her features, which ignores her legendary intrinsic value and sex appeal. Historians of her time, though not always kind, lavish her with praise and admiration. They write of her beauty and power, her great sensuality and femininity.
They describe how all men fell in love with her at first sight, and how, though but a mere girl, she bewitched the great generals of the great Roman Empire, who fell utterly and hopelessly under her spell. From Virgil to Plutarch, examples of her charm and grace are recorded. They marvel at her command of nine languages. Coptic and Arabic literature praise her wit and wisdom. Various works of literature are attributed to her, including works in gynaecology and alchemy. Cicero refers to her learned conversations.
Philostratus mentions her sensuous love of letters, her interest in religious thought, and in the great number of philosophers at her court, at a time when Alexandria was the most modern of cities, housing the great library, museum, university and lighthouse. She was able to build a fleet to rival Rome's. No! She was no illusory figure or float of the mind. Speculate all they wish, this enigmatic queen of ancient Egypt, will continue to reign as history's greatest queen of romance.
Octavian may have won the battle at Actium, but she certainly won the war of the world. He may have bestowed on her the greatest of favours by erasing her image from every wall, every temple, every statue, every bust. Nothing can equal the power of imagination. The queen must feel confined between the rigid chains of "History and Myth"!
Dare I dream of an exhibit so vast, so thorough, so grand, so glorious, to be held in honour of the queen in her own native land? Dare I dream of more riches, more treasures to be housed in the new Alexandria Library, latest wonder of modern Egypt? I can envision multitudes upon multitudes of visitors of every colour, race and creed, lining the sides of the Corniche, waiting to enter the gates of ancient Egypt, to view the queen in her own beloved city, where she lived, and ruled, and loved and died. Maybe then, the white sandy shores of the Mediterranean will reveal more hidden secrets of love and desire, death and deception, with every gushing wave! That will be the exhibit of all exhibits. Dare I dream?
Again and again, she has justified Shakespeare's description of her:
Age cannot wither her, nor custom stale
Her infinite variety; other women cloy
The appetites they feed, but she makes hungry
Where most she satisfies;Give the queen her due. Remove her from the confines of 'History and Myth', let her reign supreme as queen of Egypt, queen of Greece, queen of Africa, queen of Rome, queen of London, queen of Caesar and Anthony, queen of love and romance. This is Cleopatra beyond Myth, beyond History. This is Cleopatra, eternal queen of hearts!
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