Cleopatra T-Shirt

Cleopatra lived from 69 until 30 BCE, and reigned as the Queen of Ptolemaic Egypt from 51 BCE until her death. A descendant of the Macedonian General Ptolemy, a companion of Alexander the Great, Cleopatra became famous for her political ambitions and strategy, as well as for her liaisons with Julius Caesar and Marc Antony. It all ended badly with the deadly use of a cobra, symbolised here. This playful piece references the colour and light of Cleopatra's life: we juxtapose ancient Egyptian symbols and objects she would have known - the emerald, the scarab, the goddess Isis, and a sculpture of Julius Caesar, as well as the famous bust of herself, with a spinning top, a disco ball, a glass ball that reflects the horizon, and a beach umbrella. Her life was colourful and precarious, multifaceted and playful, and we wanted to reflect that richness here. Plus she lived by the beach.