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Egypt The Ptolemaic Period
After Alexander's death of malarial fever in 323 B.C., the
Macedonian commander in Egypt, Ptolemy, who was the son of Lagos,
one of Alexander's seven bodyguards, managed to secure for
himself the satrapy (provincial governorship) of Egypt. In
306 B.C., Antigonus, citing the principle that the empire
Alexander created should remain unified, took the royal title. In
reaction, his rivals for power, Ptolemy of Egypt, Cassander of
Macedonia, and Seleucus of Syria, countered by declaring
themselves kings of their respective dominions. Thus came into
existence the three great monarchies that were to dominate the
Hellenistic world until, one by one, they were absorbed into the
Roman Empire.
The dynasty Ptolemy founded in Egypt was known as the line of
Ptolemaic pharaohs and endured until the suicide of Cleopatra in
30 B.C., at which time direct Roman control was instituted. The
early Ptolemies were hardheaded administrators and business
people, anxious to make the state that they created stable,
wealthy, and influential. The Ptolemies had their eyes directed
outward to the eastern Mediterranean world in which they sought
to play a part. Egypt was their basis of power, their granary,
and the source of their wealth.
Under the early Ptolemies, the culture was exclusively Greek.
Greek was the language of the court, the army, and the
administration. The Ptolemies founded the university, the museum,
and the library at Alexandria and built the lighthouse at Pharos.
A canal to the Red Sea was opened, and Greek sailors explored new
trade routes.
Whereas many Egyptians adopted Greek speech, dress, and much
of Greek culture, the Greeks also borrowed much from the
Egyptians, particularly in religion. In this way, a mixed culture
was formed along with a hybrid art that combined Egyptian themes
with elements of Hellenistic culture. Examples of this are the
grandiose temples built by the Ptolemies at Edfu (present-day
Idfu) and Dendera (present-day Dandarah).
The last of the Ptolemies was Cleopatra, the wife of Julius
Caesar and later Mark Antony. During her reign, Egypt again
became a factor in Mediterranean politics. Cleopatra was a woman
of genius and a worthy opponent of Rome. Her main preoccupations
were to preserve the independence of Egypt, to extend its
territory if possible, and to secure the throne for her children.
After the ruinous defeat at Actium in 31 B.C., Cleopatra was
unable to continue the fight against Rome. Rather than witness
the incorporation of Egypt into the Roman Empire, she chose to
die by the bite of the asp. The asp was considered the minister
of the sun god whose bite conferred not only immortality but also
divinity.
Data as of December 1990
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