Cleopatra was fug

A silver denarius coin from 32BC that recently went on display in Newcastle University's Shefton Museum is being touted as evidence that the legend of Cleopatra as a total hottie is completely off-base. The coin, visible at right, portrays Cleopatra as closer to a banjo-playing extra in Deliverance than Elizabeth Taylor back when she could still fit into a single economy-class seat. Said the university's director of archaelogical museums, "Roman writers tell us that Cleopatra was intelligent and charismatic, and that she had a seductive voice but, tellingly, they do not mention her beauty."

To be fair, there is something awfully sexy about people holding absolute power that can make up for a lack of physical appeal. Being able to sleep on a giant pile of money is the sort of thing that can easily compensate for a slightly crooked nose or chronic drooling. I'm not saying that money and power could make anybody attractive, mind you, but if Bill Gates invited me to his house one evening to have an intimate dinner for two, I would at least make sure that I put on clean underwear before I came over.