Antinous

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For the constellation, see Antinous (constellation)

For the mythological figure, see Antinous son of Eupeithes

Image:AntinousPalazzoAltempsVariant2.jpg

Antinous or Antinoös (Greek: Template:Polytonic) born circa 110 or 111 CE, died 130 CE), lover of the Roman Emperor Hadrian, was born to a Greek family in Bithynion-Claudiopolis, in the 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 lover. Their relationship is understood to have followed the pattern of traditional Greek pederastic love affairs.

In October 130 Antinous died by drowning in the Nile. It is not known if his death was the result of accident, suicide, murder or religious sacrifice. After his death, the grief of the emperor knew no bounds, causing the most extravagant respect to be paid to his memory. Not only were cities called after him, medals struck with his effigy, and statues erected to him in all parts of the empire, but he was also raised to the rank of the gods, temples were built for his worship in Bithynia, Mantineia in Arcadia, and Athens, festivals celebrated in his honour and oracles delivered in his name. The city of Antinoöpolis or Antinoe was founded on the ruins of Besa where he died (Dio Cassius lix. 11; Spartianus, Hadrian).

In Egypt Antinous was associated with and depicted as Osiris, and associated with the rebirth of the Nile, and Antinous was also depicted as Bacchus cutting vine leaves as a god related to fertility.

Image:Antinous-osiris.JPG Image:Delphiantinous.jpg As a result, Antinous is one of the best-preserved faces from the ancient world. Many busts, gems and coins represent Antinous as the ideal type of youthful beauty, often with the attributes of some special god. They include a colossal bust in the Vatican, a bust in the Louvre, a bas-relief from the Villa Albani, a statue in the Capitoline museum, another in Berlin, another in the Lateran; and many more may be seen in museums across Europe. Although these are obviously idealised images, they demonstrate what all contemporary writers described as Antinous's extraordinary beauty.

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References

Marguerite Yourcenar's 1951 historical novel, Memoirs of Hadrian (Mémoires d'Hadrien) is a fictional account of the relationship, as told by the Emperor
Dietrich, Antinoos (1884)
Dynes, Wayne R. Antinous. 2Dynes, Wayne R. (ed.) Encyclopedia of Homosexuality. New York and London, Garland Publishing, 1990 pp. 67-68.
Ebers, Der Kaiser (1881).
Laban, Der Gemütsausdruck des Antinoos (1891)
Lambert, R., Beloved and God: The Story of Hadrian and Antinous (New York, 1984)
Levezow, Über den Antinous (1808)
Antinoüs, A Romance of Ancient Rome, from the German of A. Hausrath, by M. Saftord (New York, 1882)
This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition{{#if:{{{article|}}}| article {{#if:{{{url|}}}|[{{{url|}}}}} "{{{article}}}"{{#if:{{{url|}}}|]}}{{#if:{{{author|}}}| by {{{author}}}}}}}, a publication now in the public domain.