Sculpture of Cleopatra and Antony's children found

An Italian expert said on Friday that she had identified a sculpture in Cairo's Egyptian Museum as depicting the twin children of Cleopatra and Mark Antony. 

Cleopatra's twin children, Alexander Helios and Cleopatra Selene have been possibly identified in this sandstone sculpture [Credit: Giuseppina Capriott]

Egyptologist Giuseppina Capriotti of the Italian National Research Council (CNR) said that an approximately one-metre-high sculpture of a boy and girl embracing is of is the ancient lovers' offspring, Alexander Helios and Cleopatra Selene II. 

The famous relationship between Cleopatra and Antony also produced a third child after the twins, Ptolemy Philadelphus. Capriotti said that the only other works depicting either of the twins is a coin and a sculpture of Selene. 

The three children were taken to Rome after Cleopatra and Antony committed suicide following defeat by Octavius and put into the care of the future Emperor Augustus sister, Octavia, who was also Mark Antony's widow. 

Octavius arranged for Selene to be married to Juba II of Mauretania, but it is not known what happened to Alexander Helios and Ptolemy Philadelphus. 

Source: ANSAMed [April 20, 2012]