The death of Cleopatra
The last days and death of Cleopatra and Mark Antony are reviewed. Antony died a slow death after an initially unsuccessful suicide attempt by way of a stab wound to the abdomen. It is argued that Cleopatra (and her two servants) probably committed suicide through poisoning, rather than the bite of...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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University of the Free State
2005-06-01
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| Series: | Acta Theologica |
| Online Access: | https://journals.ufs.ac.za/index.php/at/article/view/2080 |
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| _version_ | 1823858323537002496 |
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| author | Francois P. Retief Louise Cilliers |
| author_facet | Francois P. Retief Louise Cilliers |
| author_sort | Francois P. Retief |
| collection | DOAJ |
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The last days and death of Cleopatra and Mark Antony are reviewed. Antony died a slow death after an initially unsuccessful suicide attempt by way of a stab wound to the abdomen. It is argued that Cleopatra (and her two servants) probably committed suicide through poisoning, rather than the bite of an asp (viper) as is popularly believed. Death occurred very rapidly and the bodies showed no recognisable snake bite wounds. Fatal viper bites are characteristically associated with prominent, swollen and haemorrhagic wounds. Cobras may cause rapid death in spite of minor bite wounds, but in order to kill three adults, the snake would have to be large. Legend has it that the reptile was smuggled to Cleopatra in a small basket of figs, which would not have been possible with a large snake.
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| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-2c23adca8de342eba59dfb8f724ae742 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1015-8758 2309-9089 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2005-06-01 |
| publisher | University of the Free State |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Acta Theologica |
| spelling | doaj-art-2c23adca8de342eba59dfb8f724ae7422025-02-11T12:26:18ZengUniversity of the Free StateActa Theologica1015-87582309-90892005-06-01710.38140/at.v0i7.2080The death of CleopatraFrancois P. Retief0Louise Cilliers1University of the Free StateUniversity of the Free State The last days and death of Cleopatra and Mark Antony are reviewed. Antony died a slow death after an initially unsuccessful suicide attempt by way of a stab wound to the abdomen. It is argued that Cleopatra (and her two servants) probably committed suicide through poisoning, rather than the bite of an asp (viper) as is popularly believed. Death occurred very rapidly and the bodies showed no recognisable snake bite wounds. Fatal viper bites are characteristically associated with prominent, swollen and haemorrhagic wounds. Cobras may cause rapid death in spite of minor bite wounds, but in order to kill three adults, the snake would have to be large. Legend has it that the reptile was smuggled to Cleopatra in a small basket of figs, which would not have been possible with a large snake. https://journals.ufs.ac.za/index.php/at/article/view/2080 |
| spellingShingle | Francois P. Retief Louise Cilliers The death of Cleopatra Acta Theologica |
| title | The death of Cleopatra |
| title_full | The death of Cleopatra |
| title_fullStr | The death of Cleopatra |
| title_full_unstemmed | The death of Cleopatra |
| title_short | The death of Cleopatra |
| title_sort | death of cleopatra |
| url | https://journals.ufs.ac.za/index.php/at/article/view/2080 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT francoispretief thedeathofcleopatra AT louisecilliers thedeathofcleopatra AT francoispretief deathofcleopatra AT louisecilliers deathofcleopatra |