For example, when meeting with Mark Antony for the first time, Cleopatra showed up on a barge with a gilded stern, purple sails, and silver oars. The boat was sailed by her maids, who were dressed as sea nymphs. Cleopatra herself was dressed as Venus, the goddess of love. She reclined under a gold canopy, fanned by boys in Cupid costumes (Hinge.Com, 1).

Needless to say, Mark Antony was enchanted.

Cleopatra made a similar dramatic first impression on Julius Caesar. Wanting to meet with Caesar, but knowing her political enemies were likely to have her killed if she appeared openly in public, she had herself smuggled to Caesar rolled up in an oriental rug. When the rug was unrolled, there was Cleopatra. Caesar was enthralled by this fascinating woman, and it is said that he made his/her lover that very night. Cleopatra obviously continued to enthrall Caesar, as he fathered...
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