William R Tyldesley

The ethnicity of Cleopatra VII, the last active Hellenistic ruler of the Macedonian-led Ptolemaic Kingdom of Egypt, has caused debate in some circles. There is a general consensus among scholars that she was predominantly of Macedonian Greek ancestry and minorly of Iranian descent (Sogdian and Persian). Others, including some scholars and laymen, have speculated whether she may have had additional backgrounds. For example, the article "Was Cleopatra Black?" was published in Ebony magazine in 200…