César et Cléopâtre Sur le Nil

Abstract

In 47 BC, after the bellum Alexandrinum, Caesar and Cleopatra visited together the country on the Nile. Not much is known about their tour of Egypt, mentioned by ancient writers. Some modern commentators presume that the famous journey was a limited sightseeing tour of the Nile Delta near Alexandria. In this paper, the author attempts to demonstrate the historicity of the grand tour of Egypt in which Caesar and Cleopatra reached the frontier of Nubia. The writer discusses the chronology of the event. It also seems possible that the mosaic from Praeneste (Palestrina) is a reflection of that memorable journey. The luxury travel, Caesar’s love for Cleopatra and his apparent neglect of duties as the Roman army commander became a motif which was later applied by Augustan propaganda regarding Mark Antony. This topos found a powerful expression in anti-Cleopatran writings and in the iconography which mocked the regina-meretrix.