Antinous

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For the constellation, see Antinous (constellation); for the asteroid, see 1863 Antinous; for the mythological figure, see Antinous son of Eupeithes

Antinous or Antinoös (Greek: Ἀντίνοος) born circa 110 or 111 CE, died 130 CE), was the lover of the Roman Emperor Hadrian.

Bust of Antinous in the Palazzo Altemps museum in Rome

1 Biography
2 Legacy
3 Gallery
4 Sources and references
5 External links

[edit] Biography

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 pederastic 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" whose word was above reproach - and the sentence structure and meaning are very precise, whether translated from Latin or Greek. Speculation that Antinous drowned by accident, committed suicide or was "sacrificed" by Hadrian appeared later, and may have had a political agenda. It is not known whether his death was the result of accident, suicide, murder, or religious sacrifice. Marguerite Yourcenar, whose book The Memoirs of Hadrian is considered one of the most thoughtful books on Hadrian's character, portrays the death as a likely suicide. The speculation concerning suicide includes the possibility that Antinous sacrificed himself in an attempt to improve Hadrian's health. It seems very improbable that Hadrian would have consented to the death of his companion, given the depth of his grief following the loss, so if Antinous was murdered or committed suicide, Hadrian was taken by surprise.

[edit] Legacy

After his death, the grief of the emperor knew no bounds, causing the most extravagant respect to be paid to his memory. Cities were founded in his name, medals struck with his effigy, and statues erected to him in all parts of the empire. Following the example of Alexander (who sought divine honors for his lover, Hephaistion, when he died), Hadrian had Antinous proclaimed a god. 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 Antinopolis or Antinoe was founded on the ruins of Besa where he died (Dio Cassius lix. 11; Spartianus, Hadrian).

After deification, Antinous was associated with and depicted as the Ancient Egyptian god Osiris, associated with the rebirth of the Nile. Antinous was also depicted as the Roman Bacchus, a god related to fertility, cutting vine leaves.

Worship, or at least acknowledgement, of the idealized Antinous was widespread, although mainly outside the city of Rome. 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 (here), a bust in the Louvre (the Antinous Mondragone), a bas-relief from the Villa Albani (here), a statue in the Capitoline museum (the so-called Capitoline Antinous, now accepted to be a portrayal of Hermes), another in Berlin, another in the Lateran and one in the Fitzwilliam Museum; and many more may be seen in museums across Europe. There are also statues in many archaeological museums in Greece including the National Archaeological Museum in Athens, the archaeological museums of Patras, Chalkis and Delphi. Although these may well be idealised images, they demonstrate what all contemporary writers described as Antinous's extraordinary beauty. Although many of the sculptures are instantly recognizable, some offer significant variation in terms of the suppleness and sensuality of the pose and features versus the rigidity and typical masculinity.

His representation in art was the subject of the Henry Moore Institute's 2006 summer exhibition. [1]

[edit] Gallery

As Bacchus, Vatican	As Bacchus, Vatican	from Delphi	Antinous Mondragone at the Louvre Museum
Antinous Ecouen, from Villa Adriana at Tivoli	From Athens, from Hadrian's Villa in Tivoli	Vatican Museums, colossal bust, from Villa Adriana	As Bacchus, Capitoline Museums
Louvre Museum	Antinous Farnese, Naples National Archaeological Museum	Capitoline Antinous, Capitoline Museums, from the Villa Adriana	Villa Albani relief from the Torlonia collection, Rome
Relief, as Sylvanus, National Museum of Rome	Antinous as Osiris

[edit] Sources and references

This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain. [2]
Marguerite Yourcenar's 1951 historical novel, Memoirs of Hadrian (Mémoires d'Hadrien) is a fictional account of the relationship, as told by the Emperor
Rousseau, George (2004). Marguerite Yourcenar: A Biography. London: Haus Publishing. ISBN 1-904341-28-4
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)