Berenice II Magas's daughter Date of Birth: . Country: Operator

1. Daughter of Magas
2. Marriage to Demetrius
3. Marriage to Ptolemy III Euergetes
4. Hair Offering to Aphrodite
5. The Constellation of Coma Berenices
6. Death and Legacy

Daughter of Magas

Berenice was the daughter of Magas (granddaughter of Berenice I) and Apama, a Seleucid princess. She married Demetrius, the son of a Macedonian king, around 249 BCE following her father's death.

Marriage to Demetrius

However, Demetrius began an affair with Berenice's mother after arriving in Cyrene. Berenice killed him in Apama's bedchamber, sparing her mother's life (255 or 250 BCE). She had no children with Demetrius.

Marriage to Ptolemy III Euergetes

Berenice later married Ptolemy III Euergetes. They had at least four children: Ptolemy IV, Magas, Arsinoe III, and Berenice II.

Hair Offering to Aphrodite

During her husband's military campaign in Syria, Berenice sacrificed her hair to Aphrodite for his safe return. She placed her hair in the goddess's temple at Zephyrium.

The Constellation of Coma Berenices

Legend tells that the hair mysteriously disappeared and was later placed in the sky by the astronomer Conon of Samos as the constellation Coma Berenices (Veronica's Hair). Callimachus wrote a poem about the event, known through fragments and Catullus's translation.

Death and Legacy

After her husband's death in 221 BCE, Berenice was murdered by her son, Ptolemy IV, with whom she had been co-ruler. A city (modern-day Benghazi) was named Berenice in her honor. Asteroid 653 Berenice, discovered in 1907, is also named after her.