Alexandrian Kings

#listen-container { display: inline-block; padding: 9px 15px; background: #10578E; cursor: pointer; transition: all 0.3s ease; border: 1px solid #1791ef; border-bottom: 1px solid #156caf; -webkit-box-shadow: 0 1px 0 #156caf; -moz-box-shadow: 0 1px 0 #156caf; box-shadow: 0 1px 0 #156caf; } #listen-container:hover { background: #2f9cf1; } #listen-container a { color: #fff; } .listen-container-svg { fill: #fff; height: 20px; width: 22px; margin-right: 5px; } #text-player { margin-right: 0; display: inline-block; font-size: 16px; top: -3px; position: relative; float: none; font-family: "Roboto","sans-serif"; font-size: 12px; text-transform: uppercase; letter-spacing: 0.1em; } Listen to this Poem Your browser does not support the audio element. The Alexandrians were gathered to see Cleopatra's children, Caesarion, and his little brothers, Alexander and Ptolemy, whom for the first time they lead out to the Gymnasium, there to proclaim kings, in front of the grand assembly of the soldiers. Alexander -- they named him king of Armenia, Media, and the Parthians. Ptolemy -- they named him king of Cilicia, Syria, and Phoenicia. Caesarion stood more to the front, dressed in rose-colored silk, on his breast a bouquet of hyacinths, his belt a double row of sapphires and amethysts, his shoes fastened with white ribbons embroidered with rose pearls. Him they named more than the younger ones, him they named King of Kings. The Alexandrians of course understood that those were theatrical words. But the day was warm and poetic, the sky was a light azure, the Alexandrian Gymnasium was a triumphant achievement of art, the opulence of the courtiers was extraordinary, Caesarion was full of grace and beauty (son of Cleopatra, blood of the Lagidae); and the Alexandrians rushed to the ceremony, and got enthusiastic, and cheered in greek, and egyptian, and some in hebrew, enchanted by the beautiful spectacle -- although they full well knew what all these were worth, what hollow words these kingships were.