Cleopatra VI

Cleopatra VI Tryphaena ruled Egypt as co-regent alongside Berenice IV from about 58 BC to 57 BC, with dates uncertain by about a year. She was the daughter of Ptolemy XII Auletes and Cleopatra V, stepping into political authority when her father was driven into exile by the citizens of Alexandria.

Her very brief period of rule reflects the chronic instability of the late Ptolemaic court. Very little is recorded concerning her independent actions, and she vanished from official administrative records within about a year of taking the throne, likely having died prematurely.

Modern scholars know of Cleopatra VI almost entirely through passing references in classical histories such as Porphyry and contemporary papyrus fragments. No monuments, inscriptions, or tomb sites have survived to attest directly to her brief tenure.

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