Caesarion
Caesarion | |
---|---|
Theos Philopator Philometor | |
Cleopatra VII | |
Successor | Position abolished[a] |
Father | Cleopatra VII |
Born | 23 June 47 BC Ptolemaic Kingdom |
Died | 29 August 30 BC (aged 17)[citation needed] Alexandria, Roman Egypt |
Dynasty | Ptolemaic dynasty |
Ptolemy XV Caesar
Caesarion was the eldest son of Cleopatra and the only known biological son of Julius Caesar, after whom he was named. He was the last sovereign member of the Ptolemaic dynasty of Egypt.
Early life
Ptolemy Caesar was born in
Caesarion spent two of his infant years, from 46 to 44 BC, in
There is no historical record of Caesarion between 44 BC until the Donations of Antioch in 36 BC. Two years later he also appears at the
Pharaoh
In 34 BC, Antony granted further eastern lands and titles to Caesarion and his own three children with Cleopatra in the
Death
After the defeat of Mark Antony and Cleopatra at the
Caesarion, who was said to be Cleopatra's son by Julius Caesar, was sent by his mother, with much treasure, into India, by way of Ethiopia. There Rhodon, another tutor like Theodorus, persuaded him to go back, on the ground that [Octavian] Caesar invited him to take the kingdom.[17]
Octavian captured the city of Alexandria on 1 August 30 BC, the date that marks the official annexation of Egypt to the Roman Republic. Around this time Mark Antony and Cleopatra died, traditionally said to be by suicide, though murder has been suggested.[18]
Octavian may have temporarily considered permitting Caesarion to succeed his mother and rule Egypt (though now a smaller and weaker kingdom), however, he is supposed to have had Caesarion executed in Alexandria on 29 August 30 BC, following the advice of his companion Arius Didymus, who said "Too many Caesars is not good"[19] (a pun on a line in Homer).[20][21] Surviving information on the death of Caesarion is scarce.[20] Octavian then assumed absolute control of Egypt. The year 30 BC was considered the first year of the new ruler's reign according to the traditional chronological system of Egypt.[citation needed]
Depictions
-
This mid-1st century AD
-
One of two statues of the falcon god Horus behind a smaller depiction of Caesarion at the Temple of Edfu in Edfu, Upper Egypt[25]
Few images of Caesarion survive. He is thought to be depicted in a partial statue found in the harbor of Alexandria in 1997 and is also portrayed twice in relief, as an adult pharaoh, with his mother on the Temple of Hathor at Dendera. His infant image appears on some bronze coins of Cleopatra.[27]
Egyptian names
In addition to his Greek name and nicknames, Caesarion also had a full set of royal names in the Egyptian language:[28]
- Iwapanetjer entynehem – "Heir of the god who saves"
- Setepenptah – "Chosen of Ptah"
- Irmaatenre – "Carrying out the rule of Ra" or "Sun of righteousness"
- Sekhemankhamun – "Living image of Amun"
See also
- Caesareum of Alexandria
- Julia gens
- Reign of Cleopatra
- List of unsolved murders
Notes
- ^ The Ptolemaic Kingdom was annexed by the Roman Empire in 30 BC and hence the office of pharaoh ceased to exist. However, due to the pharaoh's central position in Egyptian religion, the local people recognized Augustus and all subsequent Roman emperors as pharaohs for the sake of continuity; no emperor ever bore or recognized the title. See Roman pharaoh
- ^ Later full name: Ptolemy Caesar Theos Philopator Philometor (Greek: Πτολεμαῖος Καῖσαρ Θεὸς Φιλοπάτωρ Φιλομήτωρ).[1][2]
- ^ Greek: Θεὸς Φιλοπάτωρ Φιλομήτωρ
References
- ^ RE Ptolemaios 37
- ^ Oxford Classical Dictionary, "Ptolemy XV Caesar"
- ISBN 978-0-19-954556-8.
- ^ Sergeant, Philip (28 January 2024). Cleopatra of Egypt, Antiquity's Queen of Romance. p. 94.
- ^ Brooks, Polly (28 January 1995). Cleopatra: goddess of Egypt, enemy of Rome. p. 64.
- ^ Cleopatra 1996 by Green Robert p.24
- ISBN 978-1-914535-40-6.
- ^ a b c Duane W. Roller, Cleopatra: A Biography, Oxford University Press US, 2010, pp. 70–73
- ^ S2CID 154911628. Retrieved 25 October 2022.
- ^ King, Arienne. "Caesarion". World History Encyclopedia. Retrieved 29 August 2020.
- ^ Tyldesley, Joyce A, Joyce (2008). Cleopatra : last queen of Egypt. New York, NY : Basic Books. p. 64.
- ^ Rolf Strootman (2010). "Queen of Kings: Cleopatra VII and the Donations of Alexandria". In M. Facella; T. Kaizer (eds.). Kingdoms and Principalities in the Roman Near East. Occidens et Oriens. Vol. 19. Stuttgart: Franz Steiner Verlag. pp. 139–158.
- ^ Meyer Reinhold (2002). Studies in Classical History and Society. US: Oxford University Press. p. 58.
- ^ Meyer Reinhold (2002). Studies in Classical History and Society. US: Oxford University Press. p. 58.
- ^ Burstein, Stanley Mayer (2007). The Reign of Cleopatra. University of Oklahoma Press. p. 29.
- ISBN 9780195365535.
- ^ Plutarch, Life of Antony. As found in the Loeb Classical Library, Plutarch's Lives: With an English Translation by Bernadotte Perrin. Volume 9. p. 321.
- ISBN 978-1616146504.
- ISBN 978-1-324-09260-5.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-910589-12-0.
- ^ David Braund et al, Myth, History and Culture in Republican Rome: Studies in Honour of T.P. Wiseman, University of Exeter Press, 2003, p. 305. The original line was "ουκ αγαθόν πολυκοιρανίη" ("ouk agathon polukoiranie"): "too many leaders are not good", or "the rule of many is a bad thing". (Homer's Iliad, Book II. vers 204–205) In Greek "ουκ αγαθόν πολυκαισαρίη" ("ouk agathon polukaisarie") is a variation on "ουκ αγαθόν πολυκοιρανίη" ("ouk agathon polukoiranie"). "Καισαρ" (Caesar) replacing "κοίρανος", meaning leader.
- ^ The wall-painting of Venus Genetrix is similar in appearance to the now-lost statue of Cleopatra erected by Julius Caesar in the Temple of Venus Genetrix, within the Forum of Caesar. The owner of the House at Pompeii of Marcus Fabius Rufus, walled off the room with this painting, most likely in immediate reaction to the execution of Caesarion on orders of Augustus in 30 BC, when artistic depictions of Caesarion would have been considered a sensitive issue for the ruling regime.
- ISBN 978-0195365535.
- S2CID 62829223.
- ISBN 978-0-06-058558-7
- ^ Stuart, Reginald; L, Poole (1883). BMC Greek (Ptolemies) / Catalogue of Greek coins: the Ptolemies, kings of Egypt. The Trustees. p. 122.
- ^ Sear. Greek Coins and Their Values. Vol. II.
- ISBN 0500050740.
External links
- Ptolemy XV Caesarion Archived 4 October 2018 at the Wayback Machine entry in historical sourcebook by Mahlon H. Smith