Cleopatra, Antony and Caesar The Greatest Love Story of all Time Join the Tour    Hollywood's protrayal of Cleopatra, Queen of the Nile, differs from the historical record, of course. Yet the real Cleopatra was even more fascinating than in the movies. Born in Alexandria in 69 BC, she may not have been particularly beautiful. Her portrait on coins of the time shows her with a hooked nose and manly features, though her voice was said to be alluring, and she was obviously of high intelligence and ability. She was not actually of Egyptian blood, but of Macedonian, descended from one of Alexander the Great¹s generals who had come to Egypt in the 300s BC and established himself as King Ptolomy I. She came to the throne as Cleopatra VII in 51 BC, at the age of 17 or 18. Exiled three years later in a palace coup, she regained her ...