E X T E N S I O N WHAT S IN A NAME? BERENICE Why did Poe choose the name Berenice for his story? Where does it come from and who was Berenice? She was born in 269 B.C.E. and was the daughter of Magas, King of Cyrene, which is now Libya. When she was still very young, she arranged to have Demetrius assassinated, the suitor1 her father insisted she should marry. After his death, she quickly married Ptolemy III and became Queen of Egypt her face can be seen on ancient coins discovered in Egyptian tombs. They had four children, one of whom became Ptolemy IV when his father died. Although her fame has Queen Berenice of Egypt faded over the centuries, she was a powerful and fascinating woman, who faced dangers and took opportunities in spite of them and who ruled on equal terms with her husband. She had a great many interests and was a literary patroness2 to poets and writers of her time, becoming the centre of a group of intellectuals, including Callimachus, a noted poet, critic and scholar3 at the Library of Alexandria. Many poems were dedicated to her and her beauty across the Greek-speaking world. 3. scholar: a person who knows a lot about a subject because he/she has studied it in detail. 1. suitor: a man who wants to marry a particular woman. 2. patroness: a woman who supports and gives money to artists and writers. 34