Cleopatra the Great by Dr. Joann Fletcher
Author:Dr. Joann Fletcher
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollins
PART FIVE
Chapter 9
The Inimitable Life: Antonius and Conspicuous Consumption
In 41 BC Marcus Antonius, Triumvir, Imperator and victor of Philippi, requested the presence of the Egyptian pharaoh Cleopatra Thea Philopator in the ancient city of Tarsus. His envoy, the effete Quintus Dellius, was ushered into the royal presence in Alexandria and, after formally greeting the twenty-eight-year-old ruler enthroned before him, âset himself at once to pay his court to the Egyptian . . . advising her to go to Cilicia in her best attireâ.
Although responding with her usual âadroitness and subtlety in speechâ, Cleopatra as an independent monarch was in no hurry to respond to Antoniusâ request despite âmany letters of invitation from him and his friendsâ. Yet she also recognised a real possibility of forming a new alliance with Rome in the person of Antonius, Caesarâs closest supporter. He was a man she had known for some fourteen years, and his desire to emulate both Caesar and Alexander, combined with his well-known love of Greek culture, good living and forthright women, augured well for the future. So, regardless of her delaying tactics, Cleopatra decided she would visit Antonius in Tarsus â but in her own time, on her own terms and in her own inimitable style.
As âshe made great preparations for her journey, of money, gifts, and ornaments of value, such as so wealthy a kingdom might affordâ, she would use the Ptolemiesâ legendary love of show to transform a mundane summit meeting into a spectacular showcase of political intent. Yet the most potent weapon in Cleopatraâs political armoury remained her understanding of the male ego. Fully aware of Antoniusâ recent declaration that he was to be addressed as Dionysos, a god identified with the Egyptian Osiris, Cleopatra would take him at his word, nattering his divine identity by appearing as his consort Isis-Aphrodite. Although she had already established her public image as the Living Isis, she would use her appearance to issue a subtle invitation to a union on both the divine and human level.
Having previously worked her magic on Caesar, Cleopatra âwas to meet Antony in the time of life when womenâs beauty is most splendidâ, a beauty enhanced by a veritable army of dress designers, cosmeticians, perfumiers and hairstylists. Capable of transforming the woman into the goddess of beauty personified, the mysterious art of female adornment was traditionally regarded with some suspicion by men. It could certainly have a devastating effect when employed upon the political stage, and while some Republicans claimed that Cleopatraâs face âwas painted up beyond all measureâ, Roman poets admitted that âa careful toilet will make you attractive, but without such attention, the loveliest faces lose their charm, even were they comparable to those of the Idalian goddess herself, Aphrodite.
In her preparations for her meeting with Antonius Cleopatra could have drawn on all manner of cosmetic products, ranging from âoesy-spumâ, an oily lanolin preparation extracted from sheepâs wool, to face powder made from lupin seeds or iris root. The popular white lead foundation
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