Author’s Note

Egypt’s Sister is one of the most difficult books I have ever written, not because I lacked material, but because I had so much. Volumes have been written about the ancient Romans, ancient Greeks, and Cleopatra. I had to sort through many books, choose the most pertinent (and accurate) materials, and work them into my story about Chava, a fictional woman who would have lived in the century before Christ.

I chose to set this series in “the silent years” of the Intertestamental Period because I knew so little about it. I have always wondered how the Hebrew believers of the Old Testament became the Pharisees and Sadducees of the New Testament. How did the Old Testament Jews—who had trouble keeping God’s laws—become such over-the-top law-keepers in the New Testament? How did Herod—who wasn’t Jewish by birth—come to be their king? How did Rome become involved in the mix? What Bible were they using? What Scriptures did they have access to? And where does the Talmud fit, if it fits into the timeline at all?

Some days I spent hours trying to track down some fascinating fact about Jewish history, only to realize it had nothing to do with my story.

But though Chava and her family are fictional, I have done my best to make sure the historical characters—Cleopatra, Caesar, Mark Antony, Octavian (who became Caesar Augustus), and Agrippa are represented accurately, along with the culture, geography, and history of that part of the world.

In the paragraphs below, I have addressed some particular areas you might wonder about:

• How do you pronounce Chava? The C is silent, so it is pronounced hah-vah with that slight throat-clearing sound before the H. (Hear it online: http://www.pronouncenames.com/pronounce/chava). Or just say Hah-vah.
• Was Urbi really Cleopatra’s name? I doubt it. Many princes and princesses went by pet names within the family and took a traditional name when they ascended to the throne. Since Cleopatra was an inherited family name (our Cleopatra was at least the seventh of that name), I gave her the pet name Urbi. Likewise, I gave the younger brothers the names Omari and Sefu.
• Some sources state that Auletes had six children, including a firstborn daughter who ruled briefly as Queen Cleopatra Tryphaena. Since not all sources mention this daughter, I omitted her.
• Some sources record that Caesar was divorced from Calpurnia when he met Cleopatra in Egypt; others maintain that he was still married. I mention both possibilities in the text.
• Did Daniel really write the Testaments of the Patriarchs? No, the Greek document actually exists, but the author is unknown. Debate rages over whether or not it was written before the time of Christ. If before, it contains clear Messianic prophecy. If after, the author may have inserted such prophecies.
• Was there really a Jewish Temple in Egypt? Yes. Based on a prophecy in Isaiah 19:18 (“In that day five cities in the land of Egypt will speak the language of Canaan, swearing allegiance to Adonai-Tzva’ot. Once used to be called the City of the Sun”), a priest from the priestly line of Aaron wrote Ptolemy VI and asked for permission to build a Jewish Temple at Leontopolis. Leontopolis was located in the district of Heliopolis, “the city of the sun.” Why? In short, because the Temple at Jerusalem had been desecrated by Gentile invaders. Most devout Jews still sent tithes to Jerusalem, but they could make sacrifices at the Temple in Leontopolis. The Egyptian temple stood until AD 73, when the Roman Emperor Vespasian ordered its destruction.
• Did Cleopatra really get pregnant with a second child from Caesar? Yes (even though it was not recorded in the movie with Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton). Stacy Schiff, who wrote a Pulitzer Prize–winning biography of Cleopatra, says that “all of Rome knew it [the second child] to be Caesar’s. Either she miscarried or lost this child early, as it is never named.”
• Do any of the practices described in Chava’s midwifery scroll really work? According to at least one source, the “emmer/barley seed test” is fairly accurate for predicting pregnancy.
• Did Cleopatra die from snakebite or poison? No one knows for certain, but all signs point to poison. The snake was never found, but assumed, as it was part of the Isis folklore. But it is doubtful that a snake could kill three women quickly and leave no physical sign.
       But when Octavian celebrated his Triumph over Egypt upon his return to Rome, the parade featured a figure of Cleopatra with a snake clinging to her.
• Has the tomb of Cleopatra and Antony been found? A lawyer from the Dominican Republic, Kathleen Martinez, believes she may have found the tomb of Cleopatra and Antony on a site known as Taposiris Magna, about twenty-five miles west of Alexandria. If authentic, the tomb would sit below a Temple of Osiris, but further excavations are necessary to confirm her theory.
       However, ancient historian Plutarch implies that Cleopatra’s tomb was in the heart of Alexandria, near all the other Ptolemy kings’ tombs. If that is where Cleopatra chose to build her tomb, it was likely destroyed and submerged when a tidal wave struck Alexandria on July 21, AD 365. Over the years, the buildings of the Royal Quarter submitted to damage from the wave and earthquakes. Temples, Cleopatra’s palace, and other structures from the Ptolemaic Dynasty crumbled and fell into the sea. Not until 1995 were the ruins discovered and excavations begun.