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Secondary sourcePainting1763–64

The Banquet of Antony and Cleopatra

Jean-Honoré Fragonard · 1763–64

A 1763–64 print after Fragonard imagining a lavish banquet shared by Antony and Cleopatra.

This imagined banquet scene depicts Cleopatra's legendary relationship with Mark Antony.

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Etching of a classical banquet scene. A nude figure reclines on a cloud at top, with figures in robes seated at a table in a colonnaded setting. A small kneeling figure in the foreground, with a dog-like shape nearby.
After Jean-Honoré Fragonard, The Banquet of Antony and Cleopatra, print, 1763–64.

About this source

What it is

This is an etching made after a design by the French artist Jean-Honoré Fragonard in 1763–64. It shows an imagined classical banquet scene connected to the story of Antony and Cleopatra.

Why it matters

The romance between Cleopatra and the Roman general Mark Antony became one of the most famous stories from the ancient world, retold for centuries in art and literature. This 18th-century print shows how artists long after Cleopatra's death continued to picture her as a glamorous, legendary figure at the centre of a lavish world.

Look closer

  • What details in the scene suggest wealth, pleasure or excess?
  • Why might an 18th-century French artist have been drawn to this particular ancient story?
  • How much of this image do you think is based on real history, and how much is imagination?

This painting is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Cleopatra on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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Baths of Cleopatra, at Alexandria

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Secondary source

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William Wetmore Story

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Primary source

Portrait of Cleopatra (Berlin Bust)

c. 40-30 BCE

Marble sculpture of a woman's head and upper neck, shown in three-quarter view on a black stand against a brick wall. The hair is pulled back under a band with a knot at the top and a braided bun at the back. The face is calm with straight brows, a long nose, and closed lips. The bust is cut off at the base.Sculpture

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