In her adult life Cleopatra would have met few people she considered her equal. To the Romans she was a stubborn, supreme exception to every rule. She remains largely incomparable: She had plenty of predecessors, few successors. With her, the age of empresses essentially came to an end. In two thousand years only one or two other women could be said to have wielded unrestricted authority over so vast a realm. Cleopatra remains nearly alone at the all-male table, in possession of a hand both flush and flawed. She got a very good deal right, and one crucial thing wrong.
Stacy Schiff Cleopatra
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Cleopatra, throughout her adult life, encountered few individuals she deemed her equals. To the Romans, she stood out as a remarkable and stubborn figure who defied many norms of her time. Her uniqueness sets her apart from historical figures, as she had many predecessors but very few successors, signaling a significant milestone in leadership. With Cleopatra, the era of women holding such high power effectively concluded, leaving her nearly unparalleled in authority over a vast realm.

In the history of the last two thousand years, only one or two other women have held similar command, making Cleopatra's position even more exceptional. Though she possessed great strengths and achieved many successes, her journey was not without flaws. She navigated a complex political landscape, illustrating both the brilliance and the tragedy of her reign, marking her legacy as an influential yet ultimately isolated ruler in a male-dominated world.

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Cleopatra
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Stacy Schiff
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Other quotes in Cleopatra

With her death Egypt became a Roman province. It would not recover its autonomy until the twentieth century.
Stacy Schiff Cleopatra
With her death Egypt became a Roman province. It would not recover its autonomy until the twentieth century.
To one visitor Alexandrian life was just one continuous revel, not a sweet or gentle revel either, but savage and harsh, a revel of dancers, whistlers, and murderers all combined.
Stacy Schiff Cleopatra
To one visitor Alexandrian life was just one continuous revel, not a sweet or gentle revel either, but savage and harsh, a revel of dancers, whistlers, and murderers all combined.
{The Hellenistic Age begins with the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and ends in 30 BC, with the death of Cleopatra. It has been perhaps best defined as a Greek era in which the Greeks played no role.}
Stacy Schiff Cleopatra
{The Hellenistic Age begins with the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and ends in 30 BC, with the death of Cleopatra. It has been perhaps best defined as a Greek era in which the Greeks played no role.}
Cleopatra stood at one of the most dangerous intersections in history: that of women and power. Clever women, Euripides had warned hundreds of years earlier, were dangerous.
Stacy Schiff Cleopatra
Cleopatra stood at one of the most dangerous intersections in history: that of women and power. Clever women, Euripides had warned hundreds of years earlier, were dangerous.
A good-sized Ptolemaic vessel could carry three hundred tons of wheat down the river. At least two such ships made the trip daily-with wheat, barley, lentils-to feed Alexandria alone.
Stacy Schiff Cleopatra
A good-sized Ptolemaic vessel could carry three hundred tons of wheat down the river. At least two such ships made the trip daily-with wheat, barley, lentils-to feed Alexandria alone.
There was good reason why Cleopatra's subjects viewed time as a coil of endless repetitions.
Stacy Schiff Cleopatra
There was good reason why Cleopatra's subjects viewed time as a coil of endless repetitions.
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Relationships and marriages are hard enough, but you add war into the mix and small fissures become gaping wounds. No one sees what you're seeing - again that clear-eyed, unbiased thing - except your fellow soldiers. It's like one of those movies where only the hero can see the ghosts and everyone else thinks the hero is crazy.
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