FIRST LOOK: From Egyptian queens to Hollywood royalty — Barnsley’s Cleopatra reigns with new exhibition
Barnsley’s Cleopatra has come home to reign with TV Egyptologist Prof Joann Fletcher’s spectacular new free exhibition celebrating female pharaohs to film stars.
And it’s now open.
Cleopatra and the Queens of Egypt, hosted by Barnsley Museums at Experience Barnsley Museum, and supported by Barnsley Museums and Heritage Trust, is a year-long showcase curated by Barnsley-born BAFTA-award winner Prof Fletcher from March 7 to February 20, 2027.
It spans more than 5,000 years of female power, politics and pure presence, writes Graham Walker.
This is the story of 12 legendary rulers, including Cleopatra herself, alongside the goddesses they worshipped and the images they carefully crafted, featuring spectacular ancient jewellery and treasures from royal tombs.
Many of the extraordinary artefacts are displayed together for the first time - including over 100 objects from Bolton Museum’s internationally renowned collection, plus prestigious loans from the Egypt Exploration Society, the British Museum, the Egyptomania Museum, Scarborough Museums, Wigan Museum and St. Helen’s World of Glass.
It includes exclusive content from New York-based designer Michael Bengtsson, the Egyptian Museum of Barcelona and associates in Cairo.
But this is more than an exhibition. It's a homecoming.
And at its heart is Barnsley - and its own unique links with ancient Egypt.
At the helm, returnimg to her roots, is beloved Immortal Egypt TV star Prof Fletcher, famously crowned Barnsley’s Cleopatra by the Radio Times, who previously curated the museum's record-breaking visitor number displays Tut '22 and Ancient Egypt In Yorkshire.
Among the headline objects are the extraordinary Darfield coins - minted by Cleopatra and Mark Antony in 31 BC, buried for safety over 1,700 years ago and discovered in South Yorkshire soil just a few miles from the museum, now bringing global history to life.
Also on show is artwork by Barnsley-born Egyptologist Harold Jones, whose work paved the way for the discovery of Tutankhamun's tomb in the Valley of the Kings where Jones also studied the golden treasures of two of Egypt's iconic queens.
But the story also stretches from the banks of the Nile to the bright lights of Tinseltown.
On display is an original film poster from the 1963 epic Cleopatra and a signed photograph of its star Elizabeth Taylor - Hollywood royalty paying homage to Egypt’s most famous queen. Shakespeare wrote about her. Cinema immortalised her. Now Barnsley celebrates her.
The exhibition is set within the inspiring surroundings of Experience Barnsley, located inside Barnsley Town Hall. Guests will also be treated to a year-long programme of talks, guided tours, engaging events, and online content.
To celebrate the opening, Barnsley Museums will host a family-friendly drop-in craft session on Saturday March 7, along with a museum trail running throughout the year.
The year-long exhibition is an extraordinary glimpse into Cleopatra’s life.This includes her royal ancestry, her lifestyle, relationships and public image, and the many ways this image has been reinterpreted down the centuries from Shakespeare to Taylor’s iconic film portrayal.
Prof Fletcher said: “This exhibition has been a genuine labour of love and has taken several years to put together, working with colleagues both in Barnsley and around the world.
"So it’s wonderful to now bring it all together here in my hometown, not only to showcase some spectacular ancient artefacts but their fascinating links to Barnsley’s own special story.
”These links include coins minted by Cleopatra and Mark Antony and found in Darfield, the connections between Cleopatra and the Spencer Stanhope family of Barnsley's Cannon Hall, and artwork of Egypt's key queens and goddesses by Barnsley-born artist-turned-Egyptologist Harold Jones, a colleague of Howard Carter who discovered the tomb of Tutankhamun.
"Like Jones, Carter also began his career as an artist, and his largest watercolour, portraying an Egyptian Queen, is another exhibition highlight on loan from the UK’s leading Egyptological institution the Egypt Exploration Society.
"From the first named woman in history to arguably its most famous, Neith-hotep and Cleopatra VII may have lived some three millennia apart but were all part of a continuum of female rulers inspired by each other and by the goddesses they personified.
"Most were queens, some female pharaohs, and although they once ruled over what in our opinion was the greatest ancient culture the world has ever seen, almost all have either been airbrushed from history or all too often represented as little more than the decorative element accompanying an endless lineup of male pharaohs.
“So by focusing on the famous if little-understood female pharaoh Cleopatra, it puts her back into history, both at an international and local level.
“And by looking at Egypt’s earlier queens, female pharaohs and goddesses who were very much Cleopatra’s role models, the exhibition highlights key parts of her life, ending with her legacy and the way she’s been viewed down the centuries since her death – basically how Cleopatra looked back at her predecessors and in turn, how we now look back at her.
"It’s been such a privilege working with our colleagues in Barnsley, around the UK and abroad to bring all this together here in my hometown, whose own links to ancient Egypt add that extra special element to this unique exhibition.
"So ‘Cleopatra and the Queens of Egypt’ aims to place these great women back into context, while also uncovering their surprising links to Yorkshire and indeed to Barnsley itself. For just like our last exhibition ‘Tut ‘22’, our venue is the award-winning Experience Barnsley Museum.
"It’s all been made possible thanks to some wonderful colleagues with whom we’ve been working to bring together an exhibition of amazing objects - not least of all curator Ian Trumble of Bolton Museum, which has loaned priceless artefacts and helped to install the exhibition."
Coun Robin Franklin, Barnsley Council's Cabinet Spokesperson for Regeneration and Culture, said: “Cleopatra and the Queens of Egypt is one of the many highlights in Barnsley’s cultural calendar.
"Whether you’re a seasoned history enthusiast or discovering the wonders of ancient Egypt for the first time, there’s something for everyone to enjoy.
“Our exhibitions are all about bringing people together, and we’re thrilled to offer a programme that celebrates the stories of the past while inspiring curiosity and learning for visitors of all ages.”
It is a free entry exhibition but Barnsley Museums and Heritage Trust, a fundraising charity which supports Barnsley Museums, is urging visitors to make a donation - now made even easier at Experience Barnsley Museum with a new tap-to-donate contactless gift box.
Or make a donation online and find out more at bmht.org.
WATCH MORE:
Prof Fletcher's BBC documentary Egypt's Lost Queens, exploring the lives ancient Egypt's four most powerful female rulers, is being re-screened on UK Channel 84 (PBS America), on March 7 and 8. Ancient Egypt: Life & Death in the Valley of the Kings, is amongst her other work being shown on the channel in March. For See full details - CLICK HERE.
Her most recent TV work on BBC2's Civilisations: Rise and Fall, focusing on the reign of Cleopatra, can now be watched on iPlayer - CLICK HERE.
BAFTA-award winning Mummifying Alan, the 60 minute US version, is on YouTube - CLICK HERE.
LINKS: Follow. Prof Joann Fletcher on line.
Web - with monthly blogs at www.immortalegypt.co.uk
YouTube: www.youtube.com/@immortalegypt
Facebook: www.facebook.com/immortalegypt