I have studied ancient history to some extent. Writers at the time actually wrote about how she was NOT particularly attractive, in a purely physical sense.
A few years ago I read a bio of Cleopatra which pointed out that we actually know very little about her life; everything tends to be told by male writers and viewed through the men in her life, like Anthony and Caesar. Se was not supposed to be a great beauty, but whether that coin actually looks like her, who knows? She was supposedly highly educated and fascinating, though.
I’ve never heard that she was the most beautiful woman who ever lived. At best she was plain. It was her personality, education and other things that attracted men to her. I imagine she could engage in conversation with the best of them.
Odds are that he never met the Queen, either. Just like our modern day mint makers, they would have been working from at best a portrait or a description.
As far as beauty goes... what makes someone beautiful anyway??? Some men appreciate a woman for her looks, some like a woman with a brain, some settle for a woman that reminds them of their mother, some like a woman who can make them laugh... beauty isn't something that can be quanified on the side of a coin.
