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reported to Caesar, Gallus was sent to meet with her, who intentionally prolonged the conversation at the doors, but Proculeius, with a ladder, entered secretly through a window with two servants. And when one of the women imprisoned with her cried out, "Wretched Cleopatra, you are taken alive," she rushed to strike herself, for she had a small dagger girt at her side, but Proculeius ran up to her and held her, and took away the dagger, and searched to see if she was hiding any poison. And Caesar sent Epaphroditus, a freedman, ordering him to guard her alive very carefully. And Caesar himself rode into the city. And Antony was buried by Cleopatra magnificently and royally. And when she developed a fever, for her breasts were inflamed and ulcerated, she abstained from food, as if she would thus be released from life. Caesar, suspecting this, assailed her with threats and fears concerning 2.432 her children, by which she was overcome as if by siege-engines, and accepted both food and treatment. And after a short time Caesar also came to meet with her. And she, lying plainly on a pallet and wearing only a tunic, leaped up and fell before him, her voice trembling and her features sunken. And when Caesar ordered her to lie down again and he himself sat beside her, she begged him, clinging to life as much as possible; finally she handed him an inventory of her treasures. He, thinking she was fond of life, was pleased, and saying that he would treat her more splendidly than all her hopes, he thought he had deceived her, but rather he himself had been deceived. For when she learned that Caesar had decided to depart on foot through Syria, and that he would send her to Rome after the third day, she begged Caesar that she might pour libations for Antony. And when he gave permission, having been brought to the tomb, she lamented greatly, then after crowning and kissing the coffin, she ordered a bath to be prepared for her. And after bathing and reclining, she ate a splendid breakfast. And someone came from the country carrying a vessel full of figs. And when the guards asked what he was carrying, he showed them the figs; and they ordered him to bring them in. And after the breakfast Cleopatra sent a sealed tablet to Caesar. And when Caesar read her pleas begging to be buried with Antony, he quickly understood what had been done, and swiftly sent men to see what had happened. They, arriving at a run, found her dead on a golden couch, adorned royally. And of her women, Iras was dying at her feet, and Charmion, already heavy-headed and stumbling, was arranging the diadem about 2.433 her mistress's head. And when someone said, "Is this well done, Charmion?" "It is very well done," she said, "and fitting for the descendant of so many kings." And saying these things, she herself also fell beside the couch. It is said that she died from the bite of an asp brought in with the figs. But others say that the asp was kept in a water jar, and that when Cleopatra provoked and angered it with a golden spindle, it sprang and fastened on her arm. It is also said that she had a poison in a hollow comb, and hid the comb in her hair. But Dio says it was a needle, with which she bound up her hair, smeared with a poison, having the power, if it touched the blood, to destroy most swiftly and painlessly. So she perished, but the truth was not known, except that two punctures were seen on her arm, fine and faint, and no sign of poison broke out on her body, nor was the beast found, except that some said they saw some tracks of it by the sea, where the chamber looked out and there were windows. And it is conjectured that she died from an asp, because she had previously collected many deadly poisons, and tested them on those condemned to death; and she found that some were swift-acting, but brought on a painful death, while others were gentler, but worked over a period of time; but she found that only the bite of the asp, without convulsions, brought on a sleepy torpor with a gentle sweat and a dimming of the senses, causing death easily. And when Caesar heard of her death, he was astounded, and he brought drugs to the body and Psylli 2.434. but they

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ἀπήγγειλε Καίσαρι, Γάλλος μὲν ἐπέμφθη αὐτῇ ἐντευξόμενος, ος ἐμήκυνε πρὸς ταῖς θύραις τὸν λόγον ἐπίτηδες, Προκλήιος δὲ κλίμακι διὰ θυρίδος εἰσῆλθε λαθὼν μετὰ δύο ὑπηρετῶν. τῆς δὲ μιᾶς τῶν αὐτῇ συγκαθειργμένων γυναικῶν ἀνακραγούσης "τάλαινα Κλεοπάτρα, ζωγρῇ," ωρμησε μὲν ἑαυτὴν πατάξαι, παρέζωστο γάρ τι ξιφίδιον, προσδραμὼν δὲ αὐτῇ ὁ Προκλήιος συνέσχεν αὐτήν, καὶ ἀφείλετο τὸ ξιφίδιον, καὶ μή τι κρύπτῃ φάρμακον ἐξηρεύνησεν. επεμψε δὲ Καῖσαρ ̓Επαφρόδιτον ἀπελεύθερον, κελεύσας ζῶσαν τηρεῖν πάνυ ἐπιμελούμενον. αὐτὸς δὲ Καῖσαρ εἰσήλασεν εἰς τὴν πόλιν. καὶ ὁ ̓Αντώνιος παρὰ τῆς Κλεοπάτρας ἐτάφη πολυτελῶς καὶ βασιλικῶς. πυρετῶν δὲ αὐτῇ γενομένων, ἐφλέγμηνε γὰρ αὐτῆς τὰ στέρνα καὶ ηλκωτο, τροφῆς ἀπείχετο, ὡς ἐντεῦθεν λυθησομένη τοῦ ζῆν. ο ὑπονοήσας ὁ Καῖσαρ ἀπειλὰς αὐτῇ καὶ φόβους περὶ 2.432 τῶν τέκνων προσέβαλεν, οις ἐκείνη καθάπερ μηχανήμασιν ὑπηρείπετο, καὶ τροφήν τε καὶ θεραπείαν προσίετο. ηκε δὲ μετ' ὀλίγον καὶ ὁ Καῖσαρ αὐτῇ ἐντευξόμενος. ἡ δὲ λιτῶς ἐν στιβάδι κατακειμένη μονοχίτων ἀναπηδήσασα προσπίπτει αὐτῷ, ὑπότρομος τῇ φωνῇ καὶ συντετηκυῖα ταῖς οψεσι. κελεύσαντος δὲ τοῦ Καίσαρος ἀνακλιθῆναι καὶ αὐτοῦ παρακαθισαμένου ἐδεῖτο αὐτοῦ ὡς μάλιστα τοῦ ζῆν περιεχομένη· τέλος δὲ τῶν χρημάτων ἀναγραφὴν αὐτῷ ἐνεχείρισεν. ὁ δὲ φιλοψυχεῖν αὐτὴν οἰόμενος ηδετο, καὶ εἰπὼν οτι πάσης ἐλπίδος αὐτῇ λαμπρότερον χρήσεται, ἠπατηκέναι μὲν αὐτὴν ῳετο, μᾶλλον δ' αὐτὸς ἐξηπάτητο. μαθοῦσα γὰρ ὡς ὁ Καῖσαρ μὲν πεζῇ διὰ Συρίας εγνωκεν ἀπιέναι, αὐτὴν δ' ἐς τὴν ̔Ρώμην στελεῖ μετὰ τρίτην ἡμέραν, ἐδεήθη Καίσαρος οπως ἐπενέγκῃ τῷ ̓Αντωνίῳ χοάς. καὶ ἐπιτρέψαντος, ἐπὶ τὸν τάφον κομισθεῖσα πολλὰ ὠλοφύρατο, ειτα στέψασα καὶ κατασπασαμένη τὴν σορόν, ἐκέλευσεν αὐτῇ λουτρὸν γενέσθαι. λουσαμένη δὲ καὶ κατακλιθεῖσα αριστον ἠρίστα λαμπρόν. καί τις ηκεν ἀπ' ἀγροῦ κομίζων ἀγγεῖον σύκων μεστόν. τῶν δὲ φυλάκων τί φέροι ἀνακρινόντων, ἐκεῖνος τὰ σῦκα ὑπέδειξεν· οἱ δὲ εἰσάγειν ἐκέλευον. μετὰ δὲ τὸ αριστον ἡ Κλεοπάτρα δέλτον κατασεσημασμένην τῷ Καίσαρι εστειλε. Καῖσαρ δὲ ὡς ἐνέτυχε λιταῖς δεομένης αὐτῆς συνταφῆναι τῷ ̓Αντωνίῳ, ταχὺ συνῆκε τὸ πεπραγμένον, καὶ κατὰ τάχος τοὺς σκεψομένους τὸ γενόμενον επεμψεν. οι δρόμῳ καταλαβόντες ευρον αὐτὴν τεθνηκυῖαν ἐν χρυσῇ κλίνῃ κεκοσμημένην βασιλικῶς. τῶν δὲ γυναικῶν ἡ μὲν Εἰρὰς πρὸς τοῖς ποσὶν ἀπέθνησκεν, ἡ δὲ Χαρμόνιον ηδη καρηβαροῦσα καὶ σφαλλομένη κατεκόσμει τὸ περὶ τὴν κεφαλὴν 2.433 ἐκείνης διάδημα. εἰπόντος δέ τινος "καλὰ ταῦτα, Χαρμόνιον," "κάλλιστα μὲν ουν" εφη "καὶ πρέποντα τῇ τοσούτων ἀπογόνῳ βασιλέων." καὶ ταῦτα εἰποῦσα παρὰ τὴν κλίνην επεσε καὶ αὐτή. Λέγεται δὲ ἀσπίδος δήγματι θανεῖν κομισθείσης μετὰ τῶν σύκων. οἱ δ' ἐν ὑδρίᾳ τηρεῖσθαι τὴν ἀσπίδα φασίν, ἠλακάτῃ δὲ χρυσῇ τῆς Κλεοπάτρας ἐκκαλουμένης αὐτὴν καὶ ἀγριαινούσης ὁρμήσασαν ἐμφῦναι αὐτῆς τῷ βραχίονι. λέγεται δὲ καὶ φάρμακον αὐτὴν εχειν ἐν κνήστιδι κοίλῃ, καὶ τὴν κνήστιδα κρύπτειν τῇ κόμῃ. ὁ δὲ ∆ίων βελόνην αὐτὴν ειναί φησιν, ῃ τὰς τρίχας ἀνεῖρεν, ἰῷ περικεχρισμένην, δύναμιν εχοντι, αν αιματος αψηται, ὡς τάχιστα καὶ ἀλυπότατα φθείρειν. ἡ μὲν ουν ἀπώλετο, τὸ δ' ἀληθὲς οὐκ ἐγνώσθη, η οτι περὶ τὸν βραχίονα δύο νυγμαὶ ωφθησαν λεπταί τε καὶ ἀμυδραί, ουτε δὲ φαρμάκου τι σημεῖον περὶ τὸ σῶμα ἐκείνης ἐξήνθησεν ουτε τὸ θηρίον εὑρέθη, εἰ μή τινας συρμοὺς αὐτοῦ παρὰ θάλασσαν, ῃ τὸ δωμάτιον ἀφεώρα καὶ θυρίδες ησαν, ἰδεῖν εφασκον. εικασται δὲ ἐξ ἀσπίδος αὐτὴν θανεῖν, οτι πολλὰ πρῴην συνῆγε θανάσιμα φάρμακα, καὶ ταῦτα τοῖς κατεψηφισμένοις θάνατον προύβαλλε· καὶ τὰ μὲν ὠκύμορα κατελάμβανεν, ὀδυνηρὸν δ' ἐπάγοντα θάνατον, τὰ δὲ πρᾳότερα μέν, διὰ χρόνου δέ γε κατεργαζόμενα· μόνον δ' ευρισκε τὸ δῆγμα τῆς ἀσπίδος ανευ σπασμοῦ κάρον ὑπνώδη ἐφελκόμενον ἱδρῶτι μαλακῷ καὶ τῶν αἰσθητηρίων ἀμαυρώσει ῥᾳδίως ἀπονεκροῦν. ̓Ακούσας δὲ ὁ Καῖσαρ τὴν τελευτὴν αὐτῆς ἐξεπλάγη, καὶ φάρμακα τῷ σώματι καὶ ψύλλους ἐπήνεγ2.434 κεν. οἱ δὲ