GENEVA.- Well known among the world’s most discerning coin collectors, NGSA made headlines in December 2024 with the sale of the aureus of Brutus for CHF 1.84 million. History repeats itself this year: continuing its exploration of the great figures of Antiquity, NGSA once again unveils an exceptional coin. This extremely rare tetradrachm, one of the few known representations of the last queen of Egypt, Cleopatra VII Philopator, was struck during her lifetime. This remarkable piece of history will be auctioned by the auction house on November 24 & 25 at the Mandarin Oriental in Geneva. Starting price: CHF 100,000.

The coin’s striking artistic refinement recalls that it was struck in 36 B.C., at the height of the sovereign’s reign. At that time, Cleopatra VII and Mark Antony were meeting in Antioch on the Orontes, shortly before their final eastern campaign. One coin, two emblematic figures of Antiquity, whose individual aura and renown still resonate powerfully today. A mythical couple, a union of powers, who sought to bring together - even to unite - two of the most fascinating civilizations of the ancient world: Ancient Egypt and Rome.

The most beautiful portrait of the most famous queen of Antiquity

The obverse (front) of the coin displays the profile of the last queen of Egypt, whose Greek title ΘΕΑ ΝΕΩΤΕΡΑ(Thea Neotera, “The Younger Goddess”) signifies her divine power and the continuation of the dynastic line with Cleopatra Thea (150–126 B.C.). This specimen, unlike the few others known, is in a remarkable state of preservation, making it the finest example known to date.

The reverse, on the other hand, features the profile of her lover and strategic ally, Mark Antony — the Greek inscription translates his Roman dignity: “Triumvir exercising the consulship for the third time,” recalling his official authority in the Roman world. The portraits and titles of Cleopatra and Antony thus presented form an exceptionally powerful symbol of their political equality and shared ambition.

Beneath the coin’s patinated silver lies the full grandeur of this learned and fascinating sovereign. A strategic and forward-thinking woman who knew how to captivate the greatest men of ancient Rome, Cleopatra VII still speaks to us two millennia after her passing. Offering a powerful visual testament to her alliance and shared ambition with Antony, this tetradrachm reminds us that the queen’s image continues to exert an ineffable, mysterious fascination to this day. It is, in fact, one of the very few visual testimonies of this powerful woman who fought in a man’s world to save her kingdom, her dynasty, and even her children.

The few known portraits follow the aesthetic canons of Egyptian art. They are therefore idealized and not very faithful representations. Those made after the queen’s death no longer had the model to create truly realistic likenesses. Coins are thus the only means of knowing Cleopatra’s real appearance, the only contemporary and realistic, non-idealized portraits. As this coin is the finest preserved example depicting the sovereign, it is, by extension, the most beautiful known portrait of Cleopatra.

The Cleopatra coin will join the exceptional catalogue of the November 2025 sale, alongside other numismatic masterpieces from prestigious collections. Following the aureus of Brutus, symbol of the end of the Roman Republic, the Cleopatra coin embodies the final assertion of power before the tragic end of the doomed lovers — a fascinating echo between two ancient worlds whose faces NGSA reveals through the history of ancient coinage.