Arsinŏë
（
Ἀρσινόη).
1.
The daughter of Meleager, and mother of Ptolemy I. of Egypt, by Philip, father of
Alexander. During her pregnancy she was married to Lagus.
2.
The daughter of Ptolemy I. of Egypt and Berenicé. She married Lysimachus, king
of Thrace, who was already advanced in years, by whom she had several children. Lysimachus,
setting out for Asia, left her in Macedouia, with two sons, Lysimachus and Philip, a part of
the fruits of their union. This monarch having been slain in an expedition, Ptolemy Ceraunus
seized on Macedonia, but could not take the city of Cassandria, where Arsinoé had
taken refuge with her children. He therefore offered her his hand in marriage, and with much
difficulty obtained her consent. But no sooner had he been admitted into the city for the
purpose of celebrating the nuptials, than he caused her two sons to be slain, and exiled
Arsinoé herself to Samothrace. From this island she soon took her departure to wed
Ptolemy Philadelphus, her own brother, the first instance of this kind of union, and which
became afterwards so common in the time of the Ptolemies. Although many years older than
Ptolemy, she nevertheless inspired him with such a passion that, after her death, he gave her
name to one of the nomes of Egypt (Arsinoïtis), and to several cities both in that
country and elsewhere. He even gave orders to have a temple erected to her, but his own death
and that of the architect prevented the fulfilment of his wishes. It was intended to have had
the ceiling of loadstone, and the statue of iron, in order that the latter might appear to be
suspended in the air (
Plin. H. N. xxxiv.
14).
3.
A daughter of Lysimachus, king of Thrace, and the earlier wife of Ptolemy Philadelphus. She
became by him the mother of Ptolemy III. (Euergetes), Lysimachus, and Berenicé.
After Ptolemy's union with Arsinoé, his own sister, she was banished to Coptos.
The charge brought against her was a design to overthrow her rival.
4.
Daughter of Ptolemy III. and Berenicé, married Ptolemy Philopator, her brother.
Her husband subsequently having become enamoured of Agathoclea, and being completely ruled by
this woman and her brothers, was induced, at their instigation, to order Arsinoé
to be put to death.
5.
A daughter of Ptolemy Auletes, proclaimed queen by Ganymedes, when Caesar attacked
Alexandria. She was conquered, and brought in triumph to Rome; but, as this proved
displeasing to the people, she was set at liberty. Subsequently, at the instigation of her
younger sister Cleopatra , she was put to death by the orders of Antony, in the Temple of
Artemis at Miletus. See
Mahaffy's Empire of the Ptolemies (1896).
