| Preceded by: Ptolemy XII |
Pharaoh of Egypt Ptolemaic Dynasty |
Succeeded by: Berenice IV | |||
| Cleopatra VI Tryphaina II | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Koine Greek: Κλεοπάτρα Τρύφαινα Romanized: Kleopatra Tryphaina Latin: Cleopatra Tryphaena | |||||
| Reign | |||||
| 58–57 BC (1 year) | |||||
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| Legacy | |||||
| Father | Ptolemy XII (?) | ||||
| Mother | Cleopatra V (?) | ||||
| Consort(s) | Ptolemy XII (?) | ||||
| Issue | Berenice IV, Cleopatra VII (?) | ||||
| Died | 57 BC | ||||
| Burial | Unknown | ||||
- For other pages by this name, see Cleopatra.
Cleopatra VI Tryphaina II (Koine Greek: Κλεοπάτρα Τρύφαινα, "Cleopatra the Delicate") was a Pharaoh of the Ptolemaic Dynasty during the Hellenistic Period. She ruled Egypt alongside Berenice IV, who was either her sister or daughter, from 58 to 57 BCE during the political exile of Ptolemy XII to Rome. She is the only surely attested wife of Ptolemy XII and she was probably also the mother of Cleopatra VII.
Identification[]
Cleopatra VI's identity is disputed and she may be one of the following three separate individuals:
- Some sources list her as the daughter of Ptolemy VIII and Cleopatra III, possibly conflating her with Cleopatra Selene I or with Cleopatra V, who is often called Cleopatra V Tryphaena I. (Cleopatra V's parentage is likewise disputed; she's also called the daughter of Mithradates of Pontus.) This Cleopatra VI may have been born in early 140 BC or 141 BC. She married Antiochus VIII, king of Syria, in 124 BC, and bore him four sons: Seleucus VI, Antiochus XI, Demetrius III, and Antiochus XII.
- She may have been the daughter of Ptolemy IX and an unknown Egyptian woman or Cleopatra Selene. If so, she was also the sister-wife of Ptolemy XII and possibly a sister of a Cleopatra V. This Cleopatra VI would have been born c. 125 BC. As the second wife of her brother Ptolemy XII, Cleopatra VI Tryphaena II had a daughter Arsinoë and two sons Ptolemy Philometor and Ptolemy Philopater. She was co-regent with her brother and sister, until her mysterious disappearance from the records in 69 BC.
- Other sources list her as the daughter of Ptolemy XII,[1] which would make her an older sister of the famous Cleopatra VII.[2] If so, her birth year would correctly be c. 75 BC. Some sources say she died as a child.[3] Others say that when Ptolemy XII fled to Rome to avoid an uprising in Alexandria against him, her niece Berenice IV took control of Egypt. This Cleopatra VI then died in 57 BC of unknown reasons, although it is believed Berenice IV poisoned her. When her father later regained power he had Berenice IV executed.
| Predecessor: Ptolemy XII |
Pharaoh of Egypt Ptolemaic Dynasty |
Successor: Berenice IV |