Actium, Death, and Afterlife

Octavian’s forces defeated Antony and Cleopatra at Actium in 31 BCE. The following year, after Octavian entered Egypt, both died and Egypt became part of the Roman imperial system.

Octavian’s victory narrative portrayed Cleopatra as an exotic threat who corrupted a Roman man. Later art repeatedly reworked that image, making it important to separate surviving material and historical evidence from the gendered mythology attached to her name.