Egypt—In the Ptolemaic and Roman Periods

Honestly, there’s really no need to get into the nitty-gritty of the Egyptian Empire’s history, which was one of the strongest during the time of the Mesopotamian Empire and the oldest after it. But as a tourist, I can’t help but wonder—how did this powerful kingdom end up being enslaved by the Persian Empire and others? For anyone visiting the ancient ruins of Egypt, I believe we need to focus on the period from pre-dynastic to Roman rule. Pre-dynastic to Old Kingdom I already covered in my previous articles on Egypt.

During the Late Period, it was in 538 BC when Cambyses, the son of Cyrus the Great of Persia, became the king of Persia. He felt insulted by Pharaoh Amasis II for not sending his daughter as a bride but instead, the daughter of the previous pharaoh. This angered Cambyses, leading him to invade Egypt from the Sinai region. He enlisted the help of Arabian guides and spies, and he waged a psychological warfare campaign, advancing with shields painted with images of cats (the sacred Bastet, the goddess of the Egyptians), which made the Egyptians hesitate to shoot arrows at them. So, Persia ended up being the satrap of Egypt. The Persians were in charge of Egypt for roughly 200 years until Alexander showed up and invaded in 343 BC.

Alexander, a Greek, took over pretty easily since the Egyptians saw him as a liberator from Persian oppression. There was basically no resistance. Alexander respected Egyptian culture, their gods, and the rituals they had for appeasing them through sacrifices, along with their titles, which really won over the people and the priests.

And, Alexander set up Alexandria because it was close to the Mediterranean Sea, which was great for trade, especially since the Egyptians only had ports along the Nile at that time. The capital, Memphis, was pretty traditional and tied to the old priestly powers, but Alexander wanted a fresh Greek-style city. He aimed to promote Greek language, education, and urban architecture, so he established Alexandria. However, he didn’t stick around for long and left Egypt. His general, Ptolemy I, ended up becoming the king of Egypt.

This is where Cleopatra VII’s story begins. To really grasp the politics of Rome and Egypt during that time, we need to look at and contemplate every move she made. It was all about Cleopatra’s influence on the Greeks and Romans, which we see in the context of Egyptian temples during the Ptolemaic and Roman eras. Cleopatra VII was of Greek descent, being the daughter of the Greek king Ptolemy XII of Egypt. It’s important to highlight that Cleopatra VII had Greek roots and had no connection to the Egyptian royal lineage of pharaohs whatsoever.

After Alexander died, Egypt got into the hands of his Greek generals, and this is known as the Ptolemaic period after the late kingdom. Cleopatra VII was born to Ptolemy XII in 69 BC in Alexandria. Her father was a very weak and unpopular king and heavily dependent on Roman support. Romans also did not attempt to annex it, as they heavily depended on the food grain supply from Egypt. After the death of Ptolemy XII in 31 BC, his son Ptolemy XIII was heir of Egypt but was a minor and 8 years younger than his sister. As per tradition, she was also to marry her younger brother (political and ceremonial), but Cleopatra VII was very ambitious. She was a great scholar and knew 9 languages, and she studied philosophy, science, medicine, astronomy, and politics, unlike most of her ancestors. Cleopatra quickly tried to assert her independence, placing her image alone on coins and official decrees. This angered powerful courtiers who supported her brother, and within two years Cleopatra was forced out of Alexandria and driven into exile in Syria. There, she began raising an army to reclaim her throne.

At this time, Julius Caesar was facing civil revolts and his popular rival, General Pompey the Great. It is relevant to know the background story of Pompey. Pompey’s greatest fame came from his campaigns against pirates in the Mediterranean Sea around 67 BC. At that time, piracy had become so severe that it threatened Rome’s grain supply. Pompey was given extraordinary powers, and, within a few months, he cleared the Mediterranean of pirates—an achievement that made him immensely popular in Rome. Civil war erupted in Rome due to this rivalry. After Caesar defeated Pompey, he fled to Egypt. Pompey fled to Egypt seeking refuge, but he was murdered by Ptolemy XIII’s advisers in the hope of winning Caesar’s favor. Instead, Caesar was shocked and angered by the killing.

And this was the turning point in the life of Cleopatra and the history of Egypt. Cleopatra seized this opportunity to return to Alexandria and seek Caesar’s support. According to ancient tradition, she arranged to be secretly brought into Caesar’s presence wrapped in a carpet. Whether literal or symbolic, the story reflects her boldness and intelligence. Caesar sided with Cleopatra, leading to fighting in Alexandria known as the Alexandrian War. During the conflict, Ptolemy XIII drowned in the Nile, and Cleopatra was restored to the throne with her other brother, Ptolemy XIV.

She became Caesar’s lover and in 47 BC gave birth to a son, Ptolemy XV, known as Caesarion. Cleopatra visited Rome and stayed in Caesar’s villa as queen, which caused scandal among Romans who feared Caesar intended to make her queen. In 44 BC, Caesar was assassinated. Cleopatra quickly returned to Egypt. Soon afterward, Ptolemy XIV died (suspect Cleopatra but no proof), probably by poisoning, and Cleopatra made her son Caesarion her co-ruler, presenting him as Caesar’s legitimate heir.
After Caesar’s death, Rome was divided among powerful leaders, most importantly Mark Antony and Octavian, Caesar’s adopted son. Antony controlled the eastern Roman provinces and summoned Cleopatra to meet him at Tarsus in 41 BC. Cleopatra arrived in extraordinary splendor, presenting herself as the goddess Isis. Antony was captivated, and the two formed both a romantic and political alliance. Cleopatra provided Antony with money, ships, and grain, while Antony protected Egypt and restored lost territories to her kingdom. Together they had three children: Alexander Helios, Cleopatra Selene, and Ptolemy Philadelphus.

In 34 BC, Antony publicly distributed eastern lands to Cleopatra and their children in a ceremony called the Donations of Alexandria. This action shocked Rome and gave Octavian powerful propaganda. Octavian portrayed Cleopatra as a foreign queen who had seduced Antony and threatened Roman values. He declared war, officially against Cleopatra rather than Antony. The decisive confrontation came in 31 BC at the naval Battle of Actium, where Octavian’s forces defeated the combined fleet of Antony and Cleopatra. After the defeat, Antony and Cleopatra fled back to Egypt.

In 30 BC, Octavian invaded Egypt. Believing Cleopatra dead, Antony committed suicide. Cleopatra, realizing she would be taken to Rome and displayed as a captive, chose death rather than humiliation. She died on 12 August 30 BC at the age of thirty-nine, traditionally said to have been by the bite of a cobra, though poison is more likely. Her son Caesarion was soon executed on Octavian’s orders. Egypt was annexed as a Roman province, and the long history of pharaonic rule came to an end.

Greeks and Romans adopted Egyptian culture, gods, and rituals because Egypt was extremely ancient, prestigious, and seen as spiritually powerful. They believed Egyptian religion held deep wisdom, effective magic, and divine protection, so adopting it gave legitimacy, stability, and divine favor in ruling and personal life. Currently, the two temples at the Temple of Philae and the Temple at Edfu stand as compelling evidence of the strong commitment with which the Romans embraced Egyptian religion in their everyday lives. Not sure after reading Cleopatra you will love her or hate her. But she was the world’s most discussed lady even after two millennia.

To figure out whether these temples are Egyptian, Ptolemaic, or a mix of Roman –
Egyptian Pharaohs (pre-Ptolemaic) have an idealized, timeless look, while Greek (Ptolemaic) rulers display a slight touch of Greek realism with their rounded faces. On the other hand, Roman emperors show strong realism with sharp noses and heavy jaws. Note that just looking at the crown isn’t enough to pinpoint the period. The best way to identify them is by checking the name in hieroglyphics (cartouche). Egyptian and Ptolemaic reliefs often depict mythological battles with gods taking center stage, whereas in Roman art, the emperor is the one who dominates the scene.

Our Nile cruise took us to some of the most famous and iconic temples from this era, including the temples at Edfu, the Temple of Philae, and Kom Ombo. Edfu and Kom Ombo are purely Ptolemaic, while the other temples blend Ptolemaic and Roman styles. I will discuss the art in my next articles on these temples individually.

Although we didn’t visit the temples of the Ptolemic and Roman periods at Dendera, Esna, and Qena on this tour, I believe that seeing just these temples is enough to grasp the philosophy of ancient and medieval Egypt.

Epilogue

Stepping into the ancient Ptolemaic and Roman temples of Egypt feels like entering another world, where the gods, architecture, and reliefs are so unique and vibrant that it’s hard to believe these temples are between 2000 and 1600 years old. Back in the day, these temples were hidden beneath the sand and were only accidentally uncovered at the start of the 20th century.
As we make our way to the temple of Philae and glide across the lake formed by the Aswan dam, it feels like a surreal journey with the blue waters and golden temples sparkling in the sunlight.
They say that less than 20% of the sites have been discovered so far, and there just aren’t enough resources to dig them all up.
One question stuck with me during my journey—why did the Egyptians turn away from these gods? I asked my Egyptian guide, Muhammad, about it. He explained that we now view them as our honored ancestors, but the general public wasn’t too pleased with their authoritarian and oppressive ways, which led people to embrace Islam. Even though I’m not entirely convinced by this explanation, time marches on. The old gives way to the new, as is the way of nature.

But eventually when Christians and Islamists came they classified Egyptian Gods as polytheistic religion and labelled them as Pagan religion because monotheistic traditions like Christianity and Islam, which viewed non-Abrahamic gods as idolatrous or false. And that anger we can see in the Serapesis temple and Pompeyee pillar in Alexandria in 4th century AD when christians outlawed paganism.

Views: 5