Cleopatra I Was First of Seven Queens Named Cleopatra in Ancient Egypt

Summary: Cleopatra I was first of seven queens named Cleopatra in Ancient Egypt's Ptolemaic Kingdom, which ended with the seventh Cleopatra's death in 30 BCE.

Friday, June 24, 2022, 18:43, image of Cleopatra I Syra on obverse of coin of Ptolemy V Epiphanes, Szaivert/Sear 8061 (SS 8061): HJunghans, CC BY SA 4.0 International, via Wikimedia Commons

Cleopatra I was the first of seven queens named Cleopatra in Ancient Egypt's Ptolemaic Kingdom, an Ancient Greek state that ended with the death of the seventh Cleopatra in 30 BCE.

Cleopatra I Syra was born ca. 204 BCE in Antioch, in northwestern Syria. Antioch's epithet, Antioch on the Orontes (Ancient Greek: Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπὶ Ὀρόντου, Antiokheia he epi Orontou) reflected the Hellenistic Greek city's location on the eastern bank of the Orontes River, the northward flowing river originating near the village of Labweh (Laboue, Labwe or Al-Labweh; Arabic: اللبوة) in northeastern Lebanon and entering the Mediterranean Sea near Samandağ (formerly Süveydiye; Arabic: السويدية, as-Suwaydiyah) in southernmost Türkiye's Hatay Province (Turkish: Hatay ili).

Antioch bustled as an important trade city favorably situated near the Silk Road (Chinese: 絲綢之路), the network of Eurasian trade routes flourishing from the second century BCE to the mid-15th century CE, and the Royal Road, the ancient highway finessed into an efficient post road during the reign (September 522-October 486 BCE) of Darius I (Old Persian: 𐎭𐎠𐎼𐎹𐎺𐎢𐏁 Dārayavaʰuš; Greek: Δαρεῖος Dareios; ca. 550-486 BCE), known as Darius the Great, the third King of Kings of ancient Iran's Achaemenid Empire (Old Persian: 𐎧𐏁𐏂, Xsaca, "The Empire" or "The Kingdom"). Antioch's critical importance occasioned the city's designation as the Seleucid Empire's second capital (240-63 BCE), thereby succeeding the empire's first capital, the Mesopotamian city of Seleucia (Ancient Greek: Σελεύκεια, Seleukeia), also known as Seleucia on the Tigris, located on the west bank of the Tigris River in modern-day central Iraq.

Cleopatra I's parents were Antiochus III the Great (Ancient Greek: Ἀντίοχος ὁ Μέγας, Antiokhos ho Megas; ca. 241-July 3, 187 BCE) and Laodice III (Ancient Greek: Λαοδίκη, Laodika). Her father reigned (ca. 223-187 BCE) as the sixth ruler of Western Asia's Seleucid Empire (Ancient Greek: Βασιλεία τῶν Σελευκιδῶν, Basileia ton Seleukidon, "Kingdom of the Seleucids"; 312-63 BCE). The Macedonian Greek royal dynasty had been founded in 312 BCE by Seleucus I Nicator (Ancient Greek: Σέλευκος Νικάτωρ, Seleukos Nikator, "the Victorious"; ca. 358-281 BCE), commander of the Macedonian army's elite infantry corps, the Hypaspist Corps (Ancient Greek: ὑπασπιστής, hupaspistes, “shield bearer”).

Cleopatra I was born as one of her parents' eight children. She had three brothers and four sisters. Her brothers, designated as and reigning successively as their father's first, second and third heirs, respectively, were named Antiochus; Seleucus IV Philopator [Ancient Greek: Σέλευκος Δ΄ Φιλοπάτωρ, Seleukos IV Philopator, Seleucus IV "who loves his father"]; and Mithridates (Mithdradates; Ancient Greek: Μιθριδάτης, from Old Persian 𐎷𐎡𐎰𐎼𐎭𐎠𐎫 Miθradata, "given by Mithra"), regnal name Antiochus IV Epiphanes (Ancient Greek: Ἀντίοχος ὁ Ἐπιφανής, Antiochos ho Epiphanes, "God Manifest"). Her sisters were named Ardys; an unnamed princess betrothed ca. 206 BCE to Greco-Bactrian and later Indo-Greek King Demetrius I Anicetus (Ancient Greek: Δημήτριος Ἀνίκητος, Demetrios Aniketos, "the unconquered"); Laodice IV, who successively married all three brothers; and Antiochis, who married King Ariarathes IV Eusebes (Ancient Greek: Ἀριαράθης Εὐσεϐής, Ariarathes Eusebes, Ariarates Pius) of Central Anatolia's historic Cappadocia (Turkish: Kapadokya) region.

Cleopatra I's mother, Laodice III (?-ca. 176 BCE), was a princess of the Kingdom of the Pontus. The Hellenistic kingdom was centered in the Black Sea's southeastern coastal Pontus (Ancient Greek: Πόντος, Pontos, "Sea") region on the Anatolia (Ancient Greek: ἀνατολή, anatole, “sunrise, place from where the sun rises, the east”) Peninsula. Cleopatra I's maternal grandparents were Mithridates (Ancient Greek: Mιθριδάτης, Mithridates), who reigned (ca. 250-ca. 220/210 BCE) as third king of the Pontus, and Laodice (Greek: Λαοδίκη, Laodika), youngest child of Antiochus II Theos (Greek: Ἀντίοχος Θεός, Antiochos; 286-July 246 BCE), who reigned (ca. 250-220/210 BCE) as third Seleucid monarch (261-246 BCE), and Anatolian Greek noblewoman Laodice I.

In spring 193 BCE, Cleopatra I journeyed to the town of Raphia (Rafah; Arabic: رفح, Rafaḥ), located at the Gaza Strip's border with Egypt, for her marriage to Ptolemy V Epiphanes Eucharistos (Ancient Greek: Πτολεμαῖος Ἐπιφανής Εὐχάριστος, Ptolemaios Epiphanes Eucharistos, "Ptolemy the Manifest, the Beneficent"; Oct. 9, 210-September 180 BCE). Ptolemy V had been crowned as fifth pharaoh of the Ptolemaic Kingdom (Koinē Greek: Πτολεμαϊκὴ βασιλεία, Ptolemaike basileia) on March 26, 196 BCE, according to Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones, Welsh historian specializing in ancient Greece and ancient Iran, in "The Cleopatras -- Part 1: Cleopatra I, the Syrian," posted June 8, 2023, as an Ancient Egypt magazine feature on The Past website. The Egypt-based, ancient Greek state had been founded in 305 BCE by Ptolemy I Soter (Ancient Greek: Πτολεμαῖος Σωτήρ, Ptolemaios Soter, "Ptolemy the Savior"; ca. 367/366-283/282 BCE), a Macedonian Greek general who had numbered among Alexander the Great's seven bodyguards (Ancient Greek: σωματοφύλακες, somatophylakes). The Ptolemaic Kingdom ended, after approximately 275 years, with the death of Cleopatra VII Philopator (69-Aug. 10 or 12, 30 BCE) in 30 BCE.

The marriage epitomized the problem-solving scope of royal politics. Cleopatra I's father had campaigned against the Ptolemaic Kingdom as the Seleucid Empire's rival power. Seleucid territories encompassing modern-day Syria, Lebanon, Palestine, Israel and parts of Jordan, Iraq and western Iran stretched eastward from Ptolemaic Egypt's northeastern border, as described by Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones. In her new Egyptian homeland's capital of Alexandria, Cleopatra I received the epithet of Syra, Cleopatra I the Syrian (Ancient Greek: Κλεοπάτρα Σύρα, Kleopatra Sura), as acknowledgment of her ancestry.

Ptolemy V and Cleopatra I Syra had three children. Their only daughter was given her mother's dynastic name as Cleopatra II Philometor Soteira (Ancient Greek: Κλεοπάτρα Φιλομήτωρ Σωτείρα, Kleopatra Philometor Soteiraca; ca. 185-ca. 115 BCE. Their two sons received male Ptolemaic dynastic names of Ptolemy VI Philometor (Ancient Greek: Πτολεμαῖος Φιλομήτωρ, Ptolemaios Philometor; ca. 186–145 BCE) and Ptolemy VIII Euergetes II Tryphon (Ancient Greek: Πτολεμαῖος Εὐεργέτης Τρύφων, Ptolemaios Euergetes Tryphon, "Ptolemy the Benefactor, the Opulent"; ca. 184/183-June 28, 116 BCE).

Ptolemy V predeceased his wife, dying in 180 BCE. Cleopatra I Syra passed away three to four years later, in around 176 BCE. American Egyptologist Christopher "Chris" John Bennett (1953-Jan. 10, 2014) placed her death between 9 Mesore year 3 and 9 Thoth year 5 in the "Cleopatra I" section of Ptolemaic Dynasty: The Genealogy on his Tynsdale House-provided website, Egyptian Royal Genealogy. The ninth day of the ancient Egyptian civil solar calendar's 12th month, Mesore (Ancient Greek: Μεσορή, Mesore), in year 3 and the ninth day of the calendar's first month, Thoth (Ancient Greek: Θωθ, Thoth), in year 5 equate to Sep. 10, 178 BCE, and Oct. 14, 177 BCE, respectively.

Cleopatra I Syra is credited with inserting Cleopatra as a new female Ptolemaic dynastic name. Her name (Ancient Greek: Κλεοπάτρα, Kleopatra, "glory of her father") originates in the Greek words for "glory" (κλέος, kleos) and father (πατήρ, pater, "father"). Humorously, the phrase may be translated "in an intimate familial context" as "Daddy's Girl," suggests Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones in the first instalment of his series on Ptolemaic queens named Cleopatra.

Cleopatra I, with cartouche of her name in hieroglyphics, drawn by Coimbra, Portugual-born Italian painter Giuseppe Angelelli (Dec. 7, 1803-Nov. 4, 1844), engraved by Italian engraver Carlo Lasinio (Feb. 10, 1759-March 29, 1838), in Ippolito Rosellini, I Monumenti Dell'Egitto e Della Nubia Disegnati Dalla spedizione Scientifico-Letteraria Toscana in Egitto, Tomo primo: Monumenti Storici (1822), No. XXII, Fig. 77: Free to use without restriction, via New York Public Library Digital Collections

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Image credits:

Friday, June 24, 2022, 18:43, image of Cleopatra I Syra on obverse of coin of Ptolemy V Epiphanes, Szaivert/Sear 8061 (SS 8061): HJunghans, CC BY SA 4.0 International, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ptolemaios_SS_8061_Av.JPG

Cleopatra I, with cartouche of her name in hieroglyphics, drawn by Coimbra, Portugual-born Italian painter Giuseppe Angelelli (Dec. 7, 1803-Nov. 4, 1844), engraved by Italian engraver Carlo Lasinio (Feb. 10, 1759-March 29, 1838), in Ippolito Rosellini, I Monumenti Dell'Egitto e Della Nubia Disegnati Dalla spedizione Scientifico-Letteraria Toscana in Egitto, Tomo primo: Monumenti Storici (1822), No. XXII, Fig. 77: Free to use without restriction, via New York Public Library Digital Collections @ https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47d9-4862-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99; Public Domain, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cleopatra_I.jpg

For further information:

Barsali, Isa Belli. "Giuseppe Angelelli." Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani, vol. 3 (1961). Treccani > Ricerca > Enciclopedia.
Available via Treccani @ https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/giuseppe-angelelli_(Dizionario-Biografico)/

Bennett, Chris. "Cleopatra II." Publications by David Instone-Brewer > Tyndale Sites > Egyptian Royal Genealogy > Ptolemies > The Genealogy.
Available @ https://www.instonebrewer.com/TyndaleSites/Egypt/ptolemies/cleopatra_ii_fr.htm

Bevan, Edwyn. A History Of Egypt Under The Ptolemaic Dynasty. London: Methuen & Co., Ltd., 1927.
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.279352/page/n4/mode/1up Available @ https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Gazetteer/Places/Africa/Egypt/_Texts/BEVHOP/home.html

The British Museum. "Object Type: coin. Museum number: 1978,1021.1. Denomination: octodrachm. Description: Gold coin. (whole) (whole) Bust of the young Ptolemy VI. (obverse) (obverse) Bust of Cleopatra I wearing a 'stephane' (diadem) and veil. (reverse) (reverse). . . . Production date: 180BC-176BC (circa) (circa). Production place: Minted in: Egypt." The British Museum > Collection.
Available via The British Museum @ https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/C_1978-1021-1

Brooklyn Museum. "Head of a Queen: Egyptian, Classical, Ancient Near Eastern Art. On View: 19th Dynasty to Roman Period, Martha A. and Robert S. Rubin Gallery, Third Floor." Brooklyn Museum > Art > Collection > Egyptian, Classical, Ancient Near Eastern Art.
Available via The University of Chicago Library LacusCurtius (formerly Penelope) @ https://www.brooklynmuseum.org/opencollection/objects/3799

Claus, Patricia. "The Glorious History of the Ancient Greek City of Antioch." Greek Reporter > Ancient Greece. June 9, 2023.
Available via Greek Reporter @ https://greekreporter.com/2023/06/09/history-hellenistic-city-antioch/

Lendering, Jona. "Antiochus III the Great." Livius > Articles > Person.
Available via Livius @ https://www.livius.org/articles/person/antiochus-iii-the-great/

Llewellyn-Jones, Lloyd. "The Cleopatras -- Part 1: Cleopatra I, the Syrian." The Past > Feature. Ancient Egypt Magazine June 8, 2023.
Available via The Past @ https://the-past.com/feature/the-cleopatras-part-1-cleopatra-i-the-syrian/

Llewellyn-Jones, Lloyd; and Alex Mcauley. Sister-Queens in the High Hellenistic Period: Kleopatra Thea and Kleopatra III. Routledge Studies in Ancient History. Abingdon, Oxfordshire; New York NY: Routledge, 2023.

Mahaffy, John Pentland. A History of Egypt Under the Ptolemaic Dynasty. New York City: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1899.
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_HiANAAAAIAAJ

Marriner, Derdriu. "Cleopatra's Only Grandson Was Executed by Third Roman Emperor Caligula." Earth and Space News. Thursday, Jan. 6, 2022.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2022/01/cleopatras-only-grandson-was-executed.html

Marriner, Derdriu. "Drusilla, Cleopatra's Great Granddaughter, Was Queen Consort of Emesa." Earth and Space News. Thursday, Jan. 13, 2022.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2022/01/drusilla-cleopatras-great-granddaughter.html

Rosellini, Ippolito. I Monumenti Dell'Egitto e Della Nubia Disegnati Dalla spedizione Scientifico-Letteraria Toscana in Egitto. Tomo primo: Monumenti Storici. Pisa: Presso Nicolo Capurro, M D CCC XXX II [1822].
Available via New York Public Library Digital Collections @ https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47d9-4862-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99/book?parent=81a85820-c603-012f-3d1a-58d385a7bc34#

Walker, Susan; and Peter Higgs. Cleopatra of Egypt: From History to Myth. London: The British Museum Press, 2001.
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