Cleopatra Lived Closer in Time to the Moon Landing Than to the Building of the Pyramids

The Maths That Rewires Your Brain

The Great Pyramid of Giza was completed around 2560 BC. Cleopatra VII was born in 69 BC. Neil Armstrong walked on the Moon in 1969 AD.

That means the gap between Cleopatra and the pyramids is approximately 2,491 years. The gap between Cleopatra and the Moon landing is approximately 2,038 years. Cleopatra was closer in time to the Moon landing than to the construction of the pyramids.

The pyramids were as ancient to Cleopatra as Cleopatra is to us — almost.

What Does This Tell Us?

It's a reminder of just how vast ancient history really is. The Egyptian civilisation endured for over 3,000 years — longer than any other in human history. By the time of Cleopatra, the pyramids were already ancient tourist attractions. Greek and Roman tourists visited them, marvelled at them, and wrote about them as mysterious relics of a forgotten age.

Cleopatra Was Greek, Not Egyptian

Another surprising fact: Cleopatra was of Macedonian Greek descent, a member of the Ptolemaic dynasty that ruled Egypt after Alexander the Great's conquests. She was actually the first ruler of her dynasty to bother learning the Egyptian language. She also spoke nine languages in total, making her one of the most linguistically gifted rulers in recorded history.