S8 Ep1342: Toby Wilkinson, author of The Last Dynasty: Ancient Egypt from Alexander the Great to Cleopatra, Part One: The narrative begins with Alexander the Great's conquest of Gaza and his subsequent journey to the Siwa Oasis, where the oracle of Zeus Ammon declar

Toby Wilkinson, author of The Last Dynasty: Ancient Egypt from Alexander the Great to Cleopatra, Part One: The narrative begins with Alexander the Great's conquest of Gaza and his subsequent journey to the Siwa Oasis, where the oracle of Zeus Ammon declared him a god. After Alexander's death, his general Ptolemy I established the Ptolemaicdynasty, wisely integrating Greek and native Egyptian traditions and inventing the unifying god Sarapis. Under Ptolemy II, the kingdom flourished economically by leveraging agricultural innovations in the Fayum to produce valuable grain, alongside gold mining in the eastern deserts. This wealth funded the construction of the Pharos Lighthouse, the great Library of Alexandria organized by Zenodotus, and a powerful mercenary army. (1)