Arguing the Race of ‘the Most Fascinating Figure in History’
- Share via
Stanford’s claim of Greek/Macedonian/Iranian (Persian) ancestry for Cleopatra is historically accurate. Her Ptolemaic ancestry (Greek/Macedonian) goes back to Philip II of Macedon, the father of Alexander the Great; she was also descended from the Seleucid dynasty of Persia. No historian has discovered any trace of African blood in either the Seleucids or Ptolemies.
Just because Cleopatra’s father was depicted as black doesn’t make him so: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. has been called the second coming of Gandhi, but does that make him Indian?
It may interest Kiela Jamal to know that Osiris is a god of vegetation, and as such has been depicted with green skin .
JAMES CLINK
Glendora
More to Read
Sign up for Essential California
The most important California stories and recommendations in your inbox every morning.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.