# What Cleopatra May Have Looked Like

What Cleopatra May Have Looked Like is a February 2018 Twitter copypasta that falsely credited Harvard scientists with a 3D reconstruction of the Egyptian queen, pairing the fake research with a Britney Spears video game render[1]. The post fooled a swath of readers and launched a wave of mock reconstructions.

## Origin
On February 18, 2018, Twitter user @lovemedown posted the original tweet, pairing the Harvard copypasta with a Britney Spears render pulled from the 2002 PlayStation 2 rhythm game Britney's Dance Beat[2]. Daily Dot's Jay Hathaway identified the real source of the model and framed the punchline as fan devotion, writing that Britney is a true queen[1]. The tweet pulled over 3,800 retweets and 12,000 likes[4].

- **Platform:** Twitter
- **Creator:** @lovemedown
- **Date:** 2018

## Overview
The copypasta leads with a boilerplate line, 'Scientists at Harvard University have created this 3D Model depicting what ancient Egyptian queen Cleopatra may have looked like,' followed by a conspicuously non-Cleopatra image[4]. The gag works on two levels. For readers who clock it, the format celebrates pop queens like Rihanna, Beyoncé, and Lady Gaga by posing them as the historical queen[1]. For readers who don't, the fake academic framing is convincing enough that angry replies demanding proper citations end up as part of the entertainment[3].

Variations stretch the bit with 3D-rendered video game characters, selfies, bad meme pictures, and non-human mascots. Daily Dot called the format the female counterpart to the 2016 'ideal male body' meme, in which users posted comical takes on a fit male silhouette[1].

## How to Use
Users typically paste the Harvard sentence verbatim and attach a wildly implausible image: a pop star, cartoon character, blocky 3D game model, a selfie, or a meme mascot. The humor sharpens when the chosen image clashes hard with the deadpan academic framing[1].

## Frequently Asked Questions
### What is What Cleopatra May Have Looked Like?
It's a copypasta joke from February 2018 that attaches a mock Harvard University caption to pop culture images and video game models for comic effect[1].

### Where did What Cleopatra May Have Looked Like come from?
Twitter user @lovemedown posted the original tweet on February 18, 2018, using a Britney Spears model from the 2002 game Britney's Dance Beat[2].

### What does What Cleopatra May Have Looked Like mean?
The copypasta pretends a Harvard team built a 3D reconstruction of Cleopatra, then pairs that academic framing with a wildly implausible image like a pop star or cartoon mascot[4].

### How do you use What Cleopatra May Have Looked Like?
Users typically paste the Harvard sentence next to a pop star, a 3D game render, a bad selfie, or a meme mascot, playing both the fan tribute angle and the deadpan fake citation[1].

### Is What Cleopatra May Have Looked Like still popular?
The format peaked in February 2018, and Daily Dot predicted at the time that users would keep calling back to the joke for years[1].

## References
1. [https://www.dailydot.com/unclick/cleopatra-britney-spears-twitter-meme/](<https://www.dailydot.com/unclick/cleopatra-britney-spears-twitter-meme/>)
2. [https://twitter.com/Iovemedown/status/965318823002873856](<https://twitter.com/Iovemedown/status/965318823002873856>)
3. [https://nylon.com/articles/twitter-britney-spears-cleopatra-harvard-university](<https://nylon.com/articles/twitter-britney-spears-cleopatra-harvard-university>)
4. [https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/what-cleopatra-may-have-looked-like](<https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/what-cleopatra-may-have-looked-like>)

---
Source: https://meme.com/memes/what-cleopatra-may-have-looked-like
Published by meme.com — The Internet Meme Library