Halloween is right around the corner and we here at Mullen Bros. like to have a little fun this time of year when it comes to costumes. Last year we talked about How to Dress Like Queen Elizabeth, and this year we thought it would be fun to pick another incredible leading lady...Cleopatra!
Cleopatra is famously known for her "look"—exotic and bold jewelry, sweeping gown, and dramatic make-up—but did you know she is considered one of history's great intellectual leaders? It is believed she spoke as many as a dozen languages, was educated in mathematics, philosophy, oratory and astronomy, and Egyptian sources have described her as a ruler who enjoyed the company of scholars. Impressive, right?
Interestingly enough, Cleopatra wasn't actually an Egyptian. While she was born in Egypt, Cleopatra's roots can be traced to the Ptolemaic dynasty, a family of Macedonian Greek origin. Cleopatra did embrace many of her country’s ancient customs, including Egyptian's love of jewelry.
Egyptians adorned themselves with jewelry for a number of reasons. It showed wealth and status and offered protection from evil. They wore a variety of jewelry including amulets, necklaces, pendants, bracelets, rings, head jewelry, anklets, diadems, collars and insignia. The Egyptians appeared to prize the softer, semi-precious stones such carnelian, jasper, lapis lazuli, malachite, quartz and turquoise.
The color of the jewelry and gemstones was also very important to the Egyptians, since certain colors were believed to provide protection against evil and good luck. Lapis lazuli was one of the most prized gemstones as its striking blue color represented royalty!
Many movies have been made about The Queen of the Nile but she was probably most memorably played by Elizabeth Taylor in the 1963 film “Cleopatra.” The film had almost as many problems as the pharaoh herself, and its budget skyrocketed from $2 million to $44 million! That is a LOT of money for 1963. One of the expenses included $200,000 just to cover the cost of Taylor’s costumes! If inflation is taken into account, “Cleopatra” remains one of the most expensive movies in history even today.
So, you might be thinking, "Hey, thanks for the history lesson, but how do I dress like Cleopatra for Halloween?" Here a few items you'll need to help you emulate this noteworthy lady this Halloween. And don't worry...these won't break your bank!
Have fun with it, and Happy Halloween!
We're honored that Mullen Bros. Jewelers ranks #1 in overall customer ratings among all jewelry retailers in our community and we will continue to take care of our neighbors and friends, one jewel at a time!
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