Archaeologists today began a radar survey of three tombs they believe may belong to Egypt's Queen Cleopatra and the Roman tribune Marc Antony, dpa reported. "This could be the most important find of the 21st Century," Zahi Hawass, the head of Egypt's Supreme Council for Antiquities, said Wednesday. Archaeologists from Egypt and the Dominican Republic have been excavating the temple of Taposiris Magna, some 50 kilometres west of the Mediterranean port of Alexandria, for years. Last week, they said they believed Antony and Cleopatra, one of history's most storied couples, could be buried there. "If excavators find Cleopatra's tomb, the site could be an attraction for lovers from all around the world," Hawass said Wednesday. "We are not sure we will find Cleopatra's body in any of the three locations, but but we are sure we will find a royal tomb, especially considering the area is surrounded by a cemetery for important officials." In ancient Egypt, high officials were usually buried close to rulers. Archaeologists said they had also found several other clues, including 22 coins bearing Cleopatra's likeness and a bust of a man wearing a mask with a pointed nose believed to have belonged to Marc Antony. "This temple is perfect place for them to be hidden," Hawass told the German Press Agency dpa on Sunday. "We found the temple of Isis inside this temple. Cleopatra could be like the Egyptian goddess Isis and Marc Antony could be like Osiris." Cleopatra and Marc Antony, who was also her political ally, are believed to have committed suicide after their defeat by Roman Emperor Octavian at the Battle of Actium. Dominican archaeologist Kathleen Martinez said a priest likely took Cleopatra's body to the temple after her suicide. Martinez said the body could have been moved to the site and hidden from the Romans because Octavian did not have firm control over Egypt immediately after the battle. For Romans, obtaining the bodies of the defeated was considered a sign of victory.
