Of all the great female figures in history, Cleopatra, the last ruler of Egypt, is the most popular. Around her character a black legend and then a universal figure were forged, combining passion and death, voluptuousness and cruelty, wealth and war, politics and feminism.

Cleopatra's fame has grown steadily since her suicide two thousand years ago. Why is she so famous? Paintings, sculptures, prints, manuscripts, archaeological objects, jewellery and coins, costumes, projections, photographs... are just some of the answers, to be discovered in a rich selection of works from the Louvre, the Bibliothèque nationale, the Château de Versailles, other museums in France and Spain, the United States, Italy and Switzerland.

Institut du Monde Arabe
1 Rue des Fossés Saint-Bernard, 75005 Paris