New Exhibit Explores Cleopatra's Lost Kingdom

by Bobbie Leigh (RSS feed)
Jun 24th 2010 at 2:01PM

"Cleopatra: The Search for the Last Queen of Egypt," a new exhibition at The Franklin Institute in Philadelphia, is a crash-course on Egypt at the time of Cleopatra. More than just a show of artifacts and stunning statues, it is also a tribute to one of the most ambitious underwater expeditions ever taken. This highly dramatic show where you see statues being lifted from the sea on videos and then see them in front of you in amazingly pristine condition even after being buried for centuries in the murky waters of the Mediterranean is a winner. Your visit starts out with a brief film about the life of Cleopatra where you learn that she was one smart woman, highly educated, a linguist, a diplomat, and even a naval commander. In the galleries, an audioguide narrated by an actress portraying Cleopatra leads you through the various stages of her life (69-30BC) and death. Her suicide was probably brought on by fear of what the Romans would do to her after the death of Mark Antony (her lover after Julius Caesar was murdered) and their join defeat at the Battle of Actium.

No verifiable images of Cleopatra have emerged, but her royal palace, jewelry, religious icons, and gold objects associated with her kingdom have been discovered by Franck Goddio and his team from the European Institute of Underwater Archaeology. Working for the past 12 years, they have located the former palace of Cleopatra in the Bay of Alexandria as well as the submerged ancient cities of Canopus and Heracleon. Their spectacular discoveries, all documented in this show with fabulous videos, include colossal statues, religious objects, gold artifacts, and household items dating from the 7th century BC to the 8th century AD. All were buried on the floor of the sea after a series of earthquakes and tidal waves nearly 2,000 years ago. Cleopatra, the last great pharaoh of Egypt, is still more myth than reality in popular imagination ---think Liz Taylor or Vivien Leigh --but this show does a lot to dispel some of the mythology. With the help of Goddio's underwater discoveries, we get a much better idea of the style and substance of her life in the ancient city of Alexandria.

"Cleopatra: The Search for the Last Queen of Egypt" is on view through January 2, 2011. Details at www.fi.edu; www.franckgoddio,org; www.visitphilly.com.