A significant discovery in Cleopatra’s alleged tomb may have just revealed additional information about the ancient queen.
When archaeologist Kathleen Martinez led her Egyptian-Dominican team to excavate the site, she stumbled upon a small white marble statue of a female adorned with a crown.
Now, she’s convinced the bust may depict what Cleopatra VII actually looked like — but other experts aren’t quite so sure about that conclusion.
Highlights
- Small statue found at Cleopatra's alleged tomb may depict her true face.
- Experts suggest statue features differ from known depictions of Cleopatra.
- Cleopatra's final resting place remains a mystery, possibly underwater.
A small statue discovered at Cleopatra’s tomb seemingly reveals what her true face looked like
Image credits: drkathleenmartinez
The Taposiris Magna Temple, located west of Alexandria, under the southern wall of the temple’s perimeter, was where Martinez uncovered the artifact.
But while she thinks the statue may show the queen’s true face, experts have pointed out that several of its features differ from her known depictions, suggesting it may have been another royal woman or princess.
Image credits: Koantao
“I looked at the bust carefully,” Zahi Hawass — a former Egyptian minister of antiquities — told Live Science. “It is not Cleopatra at all; it is Roman.”
According to the outlet, pharaohs were portrayed with Egyptian—rather than Roman—art styles during the Ptolemaic dynasty, which could have contributed to Martinez’s mistaken conclusion.
Image credits: imdb
Her team additionally found a half-length statue of a king wearing the Nemes headdress of 337 coins — many of which featured Cleopatra’s image — oil lamps, a scarab amulet with the words “The justice of Ra has arisen,” and more, as per New York Post.
Cleopatra’s final resting place is still a mystery
Image credits: Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities
While some, including Martinez, believe the Taposiris Magna Temple is where the ancient queen was laid to rest for the last time, not every archaeologist is convinced.
Crowned at just 18 years old and labeled as one of history’s most famous female rulers, Cleopatra is believed by some to lie underwater since a large portion of ancient Alexandria is now submerged due to coastal erosion. Others theorize her tomb was destroyed or robbed.
She is assumed to have been buried with her “ill-fated lover,” Mark Antony, after committing suicide at 39 years old to avoid being paraded around Rome like a war prize.
Image credits: Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities
The case of where she lies has been an ongoing question for over 2,000 years, one netizens have involved themselves in.
“Cleopatra’s final resting place is not in Egypt,” one person stated, while another wrote, “Even if the tomb is lost, either destroyed in a quake or looted, your discoveries there have restored historical significance and proven that it was a highly important site to Cleopatra VII.”
Others have tried using technology to imagine what the ancient queen looked like
Image credits: Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities
Duncan Thomsen, a British film editor, went viral last year for using artificial intelligence to imagine what historical figures may have looked like, and among the bunch was, of course, Cleopatra.
Using a software called Midjourney, he was able to generate pictures by referencing billions of images online.
Image credits: Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities
The computer was prompted to create hilarious “selfie” recreations of the court of Cleopatra, the Last Supper, and the Battle of Waterloo.
"Sounds more like a guess than science" read one of the comments
