Was Cleopatra white or black?

Question

Of all the movies/plays done for Antony and Cleopatra, all the actresses who portray her are white. Now I know she comes from Egypt, so theoretically she should be black? Or is she from a family of Romans or something? Thanks.

Answer 1

Cleopatra VII was white. She was a descendant of a general of Alexander the Great, King of Macedon, north of Greece, named Ptolemy. Alexander left Ptolemy in Egypt about 328 BC after his conquest of the Persian Empire, while he marched East to conquer to the border of India. After word came back that Alexander had died in camp, Ptolemy took over as king, pharaoh, of Egypt. The Ptolemies, as they are called, were jealous of diluting their power. So they married one another rather than other persons. At the end, when Cleopatra VII ruled with her brother Ptolemy in the time of Julius and Octavius Caesar, her brother was a half-wit through inbreeding. But they were indeed white.

Answer 2

Cleopatra VII of the 30th Egyptian dynasty known as THE PTOLOMIES was of Macadonian(European decent). Ptolomy, the founder of the dynasty, was one of Alexander the Great's generals. Also the ancient Egyptians had a tradition of the ruler marrying one's sisters. Althought in the olden times of the native rulers this was just ceremonial, the Ptolomies did it for real. They might have been incestuously bred but were of European extraction.

Now it doesn't matter one iota what bleeding colour a historical figure is. What matters is what that historical figure did. However in history we deal with facts, in truth. The Ptolomies were Europeans. Furthermore if you look at the coloured tombs and tapestries of the Egyptains of MENES(NARMER)- first pharoah of the first dynasty or RAMASEYS II-third pharoah of the nineteenth dynasty, then you will see they have more of a brown colouring. The reason why people mistakingly think that Cleopatra was black is because she ruled on the African continent and most of the people on that continent are black. But the North Africans(including the Egyptains)were different. Cleopatra was the daughter of PTOLOMY XV(ALUTES)-meaning flute player and thus was of the same people as Alexander the Great. If you want to know what Cleopatra looked like, either see the fresco of Pompeii of Alexander or some coins or a cameo I once saw where she actually looks like a Roman woman. Her hair being in the same style. I hope this helps clear things up.

Answer 3

Definitely white. Surviving depictions of Cleopatra (for example on coins) don't show any ******* facial features. The Ptolemaic dynasty were pure Macedonian; Macedonia is in Europe, so that makes Cleopatra Caucasian and therefore white. Her father was a direct descendant of Ptolemy, a Macedonian general and founder of the Ptolemaic dynasty. Zahi Hawass, the world's leading Egyptologist,states categorically that Ancient Egyptians were not black. As for 'tan' meaning she's black - nonsense. I'm Caucasian, and when I got a nice sun tan during my Summer vacation, it didn't mean I was black.

Answer 4

We have to remember that Cleopatra descended from a Greek general who fought beside Alexander the Great in all his campaigns..

When Alexander died his five main generals among them Ptolemy divided his empire. Ptolemi´s share was Egypt where he founded the Ptolemy dynasty that ruled Egypt for 300 years up to 30 BC.

Greeks did not mix with blacks, less still if their descendants were to be the rulers of an empire and a link in their dynasty.

So Cleopatra was white.

Answer 5

Cleopatra is a descendant of Roman and Greek conquerers from the past, however her skin tone is an Olive skin tone naturally, so she appears to be either a light skinned black person or a dark skinned white person - somewhere right inbetween. On top of that, depending on the state affairs and what tradition required, she wore either skin lightening or skin darkening pigments and tints. At some state affairs she appears nearly albino in color. In others, she could be mistaken for a pureblood Native American indian. And in still others, you would have thought she was an African native.

Answer 6

Well : according to "Cleopatra" she'd is an Queen of the
Nile yes a White Emporess " dated back towards Egyiption
time sure refer http://www.Queen.cleopatra.historicalsite.com
where King Tut ruled also !

Answer 7

Cleopatra was descended from Ptolemy - one of Alexander's generals. She was Greek in ancestry, and the Egyptian system of incestuous marriage for Pharaohs means that she was still probably pretty pure Greek still.

Answer 8

She wasn' black she was greek actually.
One of her ansestors became the king of egupt when alexander the great conquered it. If you've senn the Alexander mivie-it's the old man who tells the whole story. So though she was considered egyptian she's greek...

Answer 9

Egypt is on the continent of Africa, so I would I assume that she had some pigmentation to her skin. All of the movies portray her as white because some whites cannot fathom minorities living as kings and queens as opposed to savages.

Answer 10

Acctually i would say she is mixed. I saw a picture of her and i think it is a real pic.


otherwise,i don't know