Ptolemies of Egypt by PJ Elgood

Alexander the Great died, and in the division of his mighty empire the land of Egypt was allotted to one Ptolemy, an officer who had followed the great commander through his wars of conquest. 

Three hundred years later there died by her own hand Cleopatra, last of her line, destined for immortality at the hands of Shakespeare. 

Between Alexander’s officer and the lover of Caesar and Antony stretched an unbroken line of descent, and for three centuries the land of Egypt was ruled for better or for worse by the dynasty of the Ptolemies.

The administrative and economic conditions of Ptolemaic Egypt have been exhaustively examined, and there is an abundance of textbooks on these subjects. But the kings and queens of the period, virile if not specially virtuous rulers, have received less attention. 

This book has been written with the object of rescuing their personality from oblivion, and it gives to the general public a colourful picture of a period of world history which is normally confined to the text-books of the student.