Lesser Known History of Pre-Cleopatra Ancient Egypt
Toby Wilkinson, The Last Dynasty: Ancient Egypt from Alexander the Great to Cleopatra (New York: W. W. Norton & Company, April 8, 2025). EBook. 384pp, 6.3X9.3”, 8 pages of full color illustrations, 20 illustrations. ISBN: 978-1-324052-03-6.
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“…Story of ancient Egypt’s last dynasty. Alexander the Great and Cleopatra may be two of the most famous figures from the ancient world, but the Egyptian era bookended by their lives—the Ptolemaic period (305-30 BC)—is little known… Three centuries’ worth of extraordinary moments and charismatic figures. Macedonian in origin and Greek-speaking, the Ptolemies presided over the final flourishing of pharaonic civilization.” A “cultural reach” was “displayed at the height of their power: how they founded new cities, including Alexandria, their great seaside residence and commercial capital; mined gold in the furthest reaches of Nubia; built spectacular new temples that are among the foremost architectural wonders of the Nile Valley; and created a dazzling civilization that produced astonishing works of sculpture, architecture, and literature. Stunningly, he also shows how such expansionist ambitions led to the era’s downfall. The Ptolemaic period was a time when ancient Egypt turned its gaze westward—in the process becoming the unwitting handmaid to the inexorable rise of Rome and the consequent loss of Egyptian independence.”
The “Contents” divide the history chronologically by shifts in the dynasty’s standing: its rise, crisis, neurosis, and then the arrival of a “nemesis” (Rome). There is a helpful table listing “Macedonian and Ptolemaic Rulers of Egypt”, and a “Timeline” orienting readers in this distant historic narrative. And there is a chart that shows relationships between the main players in the dynasty: who birthed whom and the like. Researchers will also benefit from maps, including a map of the necropolis that was designed just for this book. I was surprised it had a huge “Jewish Quarter” next to the gymnasium in Ptolemaic Alexandria. I have been researching ancient Jews in the Middle East, and this is a curious bit of evidence that fills in this part of their history. The interior explains that when Ptolemy seized in 301 this region on the “coastal strip” one of the things he gained was “Jewish mercenaries and administrators from the formerly independent kingdom of Judaea.” They apparently played an “important part” in Egypt across the following centuries (49). Ptolemy II then probably performed “the first Greek translation of the Torah” (87). There were times when Jews were prosecuted over disloyalty, but they mostly had their “own quarter” where Ptolemy VI “granted them their own self-governing community”. He appears to have patronized Jewish writers as “an exegesis of the book of Moses by the philosopher Aristoboulos “was dedicated to” him (150-1). Hardships included Cleopatra “refusing ‘to distribute the necessary grains to the Jews” (263). This is pretty much all that is told about this massive Jewish settlement. Because the Torah is believed to have been first-written just before the 323-221 BC period where this story opens, and the first Greek translation was apparently made in the middle of this action, it seems very likely that this was the place where Jewish scholars first crafted their theology. Only a single copy of the Torah seems to be dated to before the period covered in this book. It has probably been inaccurately dated. And if Judaism was a major religion starting in the 7th century BC or earlier, there would have been many more copies of it. A book just focusing on what the Jews were up to in the final centuries of Egypt’s independence is clearly needed to explore the likely true origin of Judaism.
The “Introduction: Questions of Identity” starts with a picturesque description of what Queen Cleopatra would have seen from her chamber in the palace. Then, her suicide is dramatically described due to her failure to keep Egypt independent. The next section also travels to a time outside the focus of this study. Then chapter “1: Rise of a Dynasty” begins with Ptolemy’s birth in 367 BC.
I have not seen many books that explore the history of this distant time, so I believe it would be very helpful for researchers who specialize in this period, who will now have a compact and dramatically-written source to consult. There are too few citation notes for my taste to explain the sources for these various details. But there are summaries of “Sources” at the back of the book for each chapter. The sources seem to be not numerous enough to have warranted in-text citations. For example, much of “Chapter 13: Dangerous Liaisons” comes out of a few cited books: Plutarch’s Life of Caesar, and Alexandrian War, with a few citations of research on this period published somewhat recently between 1988 and 2020. I guess there would have been too many “Ibid., 1, 2, 3” etc. notes in the text is these few sources were cited throughout.
This is a thoroughly researched, and energetically told story that scholars are likely to enjoy as they benefit from it. So, academic libraries should purchase a copy for their collections to make it available for specialists, or enthusiasts.
Pennsylvania Literary Journal: Spring 2025 issue: https://anaphoraliterary.com/journals/plj/plj-excerpts/book-reviews-spring-2025

Another solid Egyptian history offering from the always excellent Toby Wilkinson.

This is much more a straight up history of late ancient Egypt than the Egyptology-driven content we typically get from Wilkinson, but the research and style remains excellent. I think this one is a bit more for casual Egypt enthusiasts than some of the author’s previous work, so likely more approachable if you’re newer to the topic but less satisfying if you have a bit more background knowledge.

I think I would have preferred a narrower focus or shorter piece of the timeline with greater detail, as all of the Ptolemaic Age is a LOT to cram into one book, but I also think this is useful as a primer in that regard. And of course, Wilkinson is so meticulous that even if you’re well versed in the Ptolmies, you’re going to learn a thing or two.

I want to start by thanking NetGalley and W. W. Norton & Company for a review copy of this work in exchange for review.

This book was not what I was expecting. I was expecting a little more focus on the members of the dynasty and their contributions to Egypt during the 300 years of their rule. However, Wilkinson provides a comprehensive and detailed sociocultural history of the Ptolemaic period, bringing to the forefront of history the lives of everyday indigenous Egyptians and Greek immigrant communities, rather than focusing solely on the Ptolemaic Pharos. By shifting focus away from the court, Wilkinson has created an interesting and detailed work focused on the uncertainty, cultural tensions, and religious practices occurring during the period.

The greatest moments of the book are the actual quotations of the surviving evidence of everyday individuals. From the man seeking refuge in a religious temple, to the funeral markings of the wife of the High Priest of Phat. Even after thousands of years the very human nature of these works helps to highlight the past is both distant and close.

I also enjoyed the discussion of Cleopatra VII's role in the practices of Indigenous Egyptian religious cults. I learned quite a bit about her approach to the traditional role of Pharo in religious practices and her links to the cult of Isis.

I will say that I found quite a few portions of this book to be a little repetitive. I do think that Wilkinson was trying to draw a thorough line between the height of Ptolemaic power and its end, but Alexander the Great makes a lot of appearances throughout the book and the golden age of the Dynasty was constantly referenced. It made it a little hard to follow the timeline of how events were unfolding.

Overall, I enjoyed this book. It provided a deeper understanding of how the Ptolemaic dynasty maintained their power after securing their place in Egypt. The death of Alexander the Great left his empire in a race for dominance and Ptolemy I was able to establish himself and his dynasty in such a way to integrate Egyptian customs and maintain power for nearly three centuries. Wilkinson's writing not only highlights life in wider Egypt but also the tensions between Greek Immigrants who helped install Ptolemaic rule and the Indigenous Egyptians who ensured the continuation of the dynasty. Would recommend it to those interested in a great cultural understanding of Egypt during the last Pharaonic dynasty.

Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Death, Incest, Infertility, Infidelity, Toxic relationship, Violence, Xenophobia, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Cultural appropriation, Toxic friendship, Colonisation, War, Classism
Moderate: Fatphobia, Misogyny, Sexism, Suicide, Medical content, Pregnancy, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Slavery, Kidnapping

Oh this book was so so good! I've read another of his books about Egypt a couple of years ago and was impressed with the level of research. This book didn't disappoint and in my opinion, went over and above in many ways, Cleopatra has always fascinated popular culture but the origin story of her family is just as worthy of interest and praise because oh boy, is there plenty of tea there all the down the family tree.

This book is meticulously researched but isn't boring and will not turn away those that rarely indulge in nonfiction. In fact, because its language is so clear, each Ptolemy's personality is so well laid out, and events flow so seamlessly, a non fan of fiction will not realize until it's too late that they are in fact enjoying a history book :)

Wilkinson’s storytelling is what truly kept me engaged throughout this book. His examination of Alexander the Great’s role in laying the foundations for the Ptolemaic period is particularly insightful, highlighting the deliberate integration of Grecian and Egyptian cultural elements that facilitated the acceptance of subsequent Macedonian rule. This is a thoughtful and brilliantly descriptive exploration of a frequently overlooked era of history.

Honestly while I thought this did contain new to me information and was well researched I just wasn't appreciative of the writing.It was rather dull at points and the author constantly switched timelines in the middle of certain pharaoh's stories.You might be reading about Ptolemy III but in actuality the author has switched to Ptolemy I mid paragraph and then back again after several sentences.It was a pretty frustrating issue for me but I prevailed and did enjoy reading about the Triumphs,some of the lesser known pharaohs and of course Alexandria itself.

I learned a lot from reading this book, it's very thorough. That's also part of what I didn't like about it, just because it's so much to take in that it took me so much longer than it normally would to read through. I've never read a book on this period of Egyptian history before, but I feel like it does a good job of discussing the history in a way that is accessible to someone with limited knowledge of this area.

The synopsis of this book was highly intriguing to me as I love reading about the history of Ancient Egypt as well as other ancient civilizations. This specific book covers the last dynasty of Ancient Egypt from the ruling of Alexander the Great to Cleopatra. This period in Ancient Egyptian history was very unique after Ptolemy began a new dynasty in ancient Egypt that lasted for several hundred years. Alexandria became the new center of this civilization that blended ancient Egyptian and ancient Greek societies together prior to the rise of Ancient Rome. I really liked how detailed the writing was and you can tell this book was very well researched by the author as he relied on original documents from this era in history as well as recent archaeological discoveries to tell this story. I liked how interesting the content of this book was and how the author interpreted these archaeological discoveries and original documents in a way that the reader could easily understand their meaning. I think a lot of people who love reading about this period in history will enjoy this book.

Deep, clear, and a very fun read! This part of history has been magnified by so many over the centuries at varying degrees of accuracy, completion, and care. If one wanted to know what actually occurred in that time period then Wilkinson is someone you must read! I know it's difficult, and I've often thought about how much about the documentation of the daily lives of Ancient Egyptians was lost during the fire at Alexandria. I wish this book opined on the daily lives of the citizens back then, but that's no fault of this book.

Overall, I really enjoyed learning about this era of history. There's so much written about Alexander the Great and Cleopatra VII, but this is the first time I've read something this in depth about the centuries in between. The only minor complaint I had is that I wish the information about the more day-to-day life in the era was incorporated into the book better. There were a few times where a chapter would leave off on a bit of a cliffhanger about what happened next, and then the next chapter would dive into temple politics and agriculture.

Toby Wilkinson has cemented himself as a reputable and fair Egyptologist, looking at all viewpoints in the historical periods he covers. This latest book of his was well-written and insightful.

Wilkinson again confirms his preeminent position as the foremost contemporary scholar of Ancient Egypt. Fantastic look at an Empire in decline and the figures that made the Last Dynasty such a captivating moment for everyone from historians to Shakespeare. An essential read.