Athens Museum Antinous Antinoos lover friend of emperor Hadrian
He was born to a Greek family in Bithynion-Claudiopolis, in the Roman province of Bithynia in what is now north-west Turkey. It is thought he joined the entourage of the Emperor when Hadrian passed through Bithynia in about 124, and soon became his eromenos (lover) who accompanied him on his many journeys through the empire. Another version has it that Hadrian had the empire searched for the most beautiful youth, and chose Antinous. Their relationship is understood to have followed the pattern of traditional Greek pederastic love affairs. In October 130, according to Hadrian, "Antinous was drowned in Nilus." This is the only contemporaneous statement made - significantly by the one person in a position to "testify" at an "inquaestio" who's word was above reproach - and the sentence structure and meaning are very precise - whether translated from the Latin or The Greek. "Antinous was drowned in Nilus" - is the one statement quoted by all the pro-Hadrianic Historians - the libels that Antinous - a superb athlete, drowned "by accident" - committed suicide or was "sacrificed" by Hadrian are post obitum slanders by anti-Hadrian Christian "historians." It is not known whether his death was the result of accident, suicide, murder or religious sacrifice. One theory states that his relationship with Hadrian was socially acceptable until he reached adulthood, and then he had to die, since he might no longer be the passive party in intercourse within the relationship.
Size: 3224px × 5457px
Photo credit: © Peter Horree / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: -, 124, 130, accompanied, affairs., ancient, antinoos, antinous, antinous., antiquity, archaeological, archeology, architecture, beautiful, bithynia, bithynion-claudiopolis, born, chose, civilization, contemporaneous, cult, culture, devotion, drowned, emperor, empire, empire., entourage, eromenos, family, god, goddess, gods, greece, greek, hadrian, historic, history, inquaestio, joined, journeys, love, lover, majestic, meaning, museum, nilus., north-west, october, passed, pattern, pederastic, person, position, precise, province, relationship, religion, religious, reproach, roman, sculpture, searched, sentence, significantly, site, spirit, spiritual, statement, statue, structure, temple, testify, thought, traditional, turkey., understood, version, word, worship, youth
