and
Antinous
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Hadrian
and Antinous
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- ST Anthanasius, 350 AD
The deification of Antinous, his medals, statues, city, oracles, and constellation, are well known, and still dishonor the memory of Hadrian. Yet we may remark, that of the first fifteen emperors, Claudius was the only one whose taste in love was entirely correct.
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Faced with such harshly prudish comments, it is of no wonder that many like myself have become fascinated in the boy whom they address. The majority of references one will see in modern times to Antinous are either such as the above or take the form of proudly displayed quips declaring the manes of famous homosexuals throughout history which tell us little other than the fact that, like most Greek men or his era, Antinous participated in homosexual activities. In deed, there are few works that even bother mentioning the boy as it has been the tendency of the majority of historians to sweep Antinous under the rug to avoid what they consider a defamation of Emperor Hadrian, who has long been considered one of the most successful of the Emperors of Rome.
The story of Hadrian and Antinous, seen by some as a real life version of the myth of Zeus and Ganymede, is a romance and a tragedy. That the young Antinous was the lover of the Emperor, who is known for his Hellenistic ways, is of little true amazement and in itself would not have caused a scandalous cry to echo through the centuries. However, when the boy who is thought to have been the only true love in Hadrian's life was found drowned in the Nile it sent the Emperor into a swell of grief so mighty that it altered the Roman world.
| Publius Aeliues Hadrienus was born January of 76 AD, most likely in Rome but possibly in Italica, near Seville. In his youth, he developed a fondness for Hellenic culture that was to earn him the nickname, "Graeculus," or "The Greekling." | |
Emperor Trajan "He looked stupid and was believed honest."
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In 85 AD, Hadrian's life was changed by the death of his father. The boy was left in the care of two guardians, his father's dear friend Acilius Attianus and his father's cousin, Trajan, who became Emperor in 98 AD. The relationship between Hadrian and Trajan is open to speculation. It seemed to vary between immense affection to near hatred. Since it is oft said that the only thing that the two truly had in common was a love of boys, it is possible though not proven that they were in fact lovers and it has long been alleged that many of the troubles between the two were caused by the boys they kept. It has also been alleged, with less evidence, that Hadrian became the lover of the Empress Plotina. While the two where very close, the relationship seems to have been more similar to that of mentor to student as the Empress was most well known for her learning and love of history. There also seems to have been a maternal aspect to the relationship as in letters, Hadrian refers to Plotina as "my dearest and most honoured mother" and she to him as, "my own dear son."
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 Empress Sabina |
In the year 100 AD, two years after his guardian became Emperor, Hadrian was wed to the young great-niece of said guardian. The girl, Sabina, was approximately 13 and still fairly young even by Roman terms of marriage. There was never to be much fondness between Sabina and Hadrian, and indeed there was much hostility, who were married for purely political reasons as Sabina was the Emperor's closest unmarried female relative. In retaliation to the lack of emotion given her by her husband, Sabina apparently took steps to insure that Hadrian would never have a child by her. To describe his wife, Hadrian used the words, "moody and difficult," and declared that if he were a private citizen free to do his own will, he would divorce her. However, despite the hostility between the couple, Hadrian was very fond of his mother-in-law, Matidia, who he praised as, "helpful to all, troublesome to no one, ill-humoured with nobody." It was in her honour that the first temple in Rome ever to be built in the name of a woman was constructed by order of her son-in-law. Although by 117, Hadrian had been given control of the armies of the east and it had been rumored for many years the he was to be officially adopted by Trajan as heir, no papers where ever produced to the effect until the time of Trajan's death. The papers arrived in Rome two days before the news of the Emperor's death and it was long rumored that the clever Plotina had forged the documents to aide her protege. It is arguable that Hadrian would most likely have been able to win the Empire either way due to his control of the army and his connection to Trajan by blood and marriage, but formal documents from Trajan could hardly have hurt his cause.. While Hadrian hastily dealt with the war in Tigris and Euphrates that Trajan had died before completing and went on to suppress the Jewish revolts in t he Middle East, Plotina and Attianus, the other guardian of Hadrian's childhood and current Prefect of the Guard, made swiftly to Rome with the ashes of Trajan and praise of Hadrian. The case to crown Hadrian Emperor was defended before the Senate with the help of Attianus, who managed to bully the Senate into executing four of the most distinguished consolers of Trajan's rule. These men were powerful and thought to be against Hadrian, whom the Senate never fully forgave for the death sentences although there was no proof directly connecting him to the action. For taking the trouble to help Hadrian ascend to Emperor, Attianus was swiftly promoted to the Senate, which was seen as a form of political extinction, for Hadrian was never to look kindly upon anyone who implied a weakness in his position or character by openly aiding him.
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Hadrian was, throughout most of his life, known as a military man. He, like many other young Romans, joined the army when he was a teenager and went to train in Italica. He rose through the ranks as was befitting of one of his position in life and became a well-respected general. He was a leader known for such radical behavior as marching with his troops and sleeping alongside him. Had this occurred only infrequently, one might postulate that it was only for effect, but as it was a mark of the majority of his campaigns, it would seem to be a deep felt command style.
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 Entrance Arch to old Athens Constructed by Hadrian |
Hadrian was also known for his architecture. It is theorized that Hadrian actually had a hand in the design of many of the buildings that were erected by his order. The most obvious construct of Hadrian's reign is by far Hadrian's Wall, built to defend Roman Britain from the Scottish Picts in the North. More impressive and important was the construction by Hadrian of a series of defenses stretching between the Rhine and Danube Rivers. Although these defenses where mostly of wood and failed to survive very long, they did serve to protect Rome against the Germanic tribes that were much more of a threat to the Empire than the Picts were. And, of great use to the Empire and to Greece in particular, Hadrian did much to improve the infrastructure of the East, adding new roads, aqueducts, temples, theatres, circuses, and other city improvements. Another mark of Hadrian's reign was a strong economy. Obviously, all of Hadrian's construction projects must have had funding, as did the numerous well fare projects he set up. That he managed to do this without raising taxes even after dissolving all debts owed to the government on his crowning, says much not only for his economic pollicies and brilliance, but also much for the waste and embezzlement of many of his predecessors. This was undoubtedly helped by the Emperor's memory, which was often said to be near photographic; it is claimed that he never forgot the face and name of any he came into contact with, even if it were only in passing. Combined with the fact that Hadrian's extensive touring of his realms usually took place on foot or horse so that he could get a closer feel for the provinces and their people, it is not difficult to see why Hadrian was so popular a man. |
Antinous
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Antinous was born in the town of Bithynion-Claudiopolis, in the Greek province of Bithynia on the northwest coast of Asia Minor. His birth was definitely in November and most probably on the 27th. The year of his birth is not known, but at the time of his death in 132, he was described as "ephebe" and "meirkakion," two words meant to convey a boy is his late teens or a young man of around twenty. From this we can postulate that Antinous was born in either 110, 111, or 112. His parentage is unknown, as no details of his family have remained extant. It is thought that his parents may have originally been mentioned in the epitaph on the obelisk that Hadrian erected for the boy after his death, but the section where such mention is thought to have been contained is agonizingly chipped off the stone. Little is known as to how Antinous came to be in the house of Hadrian. It is thought that he was taken from Claudiopolis during one of Hadrian's tours of the provinces in 123, when the boy was around eleven or twelve. Whether he was taken by force or went willingly is open to speculation, but that he later became the Emperor's favorite seems to preclude his ever being a slave since Hadrian was known to accept social boundaries. The fact that many busts where made of an Antinous aged around thirteen would indicate that he was a member of the Emperor's circle soon after leaving his home. It is thought that he was taken to Rome as a page and perhaps entered into the imperial paedagogium. The paedagogium may have, in part, served as a harem of boys, but its official role was that of a polishing school designed to train the boys to become palace or civil servants. It is impossible to say exactly when Hadrian became enamored of Antinous but it is thought to have been sometime between the Emperor's return to Italy in 125 and his next trip to Greece in 128, on which tour Antinous accompanied him as favorite.
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It is important when discussing the relationship between Hadrian and Antinous to give acknowledgement to the system of pederasty that existed their time. It was primarily a Hellenic institution and that Hadrian should have felt drawn to it is not at all unusual given his love of all things Greek. In the old Grecian way, the love of a man for a boy was considered to be the purest form of love. Love for a woman, ancient philosophers held, was a waste for a woman was an inferior being and lust felt for a woman was a dirty thing only necessary for procreation. But a boy was equal in all ways save age and hence worthy of adoration. The boy in such couples, known as the "eromenos," would generally be entering puberty when the relationship began and would leave it when he began to show facial hair in his late teens or early twenties. Any male who preferred the submissive role in relationships after this point was refereed to as pathetic. The older man in the relationship, referred to as "erastes," was usually between the ages of twenty and forty, for as was proverbially stated, "to be a lover when old is the worst of misfortunes." (Obviously, Hadrian did not follow this advice.) In return for the respect, devotion, and sexual satisfaction offered by the eromenos, the erastes would provide the boy with training in mind, body, morals, customs, and responsibilities as well as devoted affection. As the boy's family would most likely never have given him more than passing attentions, the affections of his erastes were seen as healthy and good for the child. That spiritual love should also have a physical component was seen as obvious and proper in most circles and hence few thought anything at all wrong or even odd about the system of pederasty. In deed, so much poetry and art was dedicated to it that even men who never took eromenoi and who seemed to have actually preferred the attentions of a woman often wrote verses praising boys anyway, just so that they would be accepted by their peers. |
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Antinous was the perfect eromenos for Hadrian. He was accounted beautiful by all that beheld him, was said to have great intelligence and a sharp wit, and was a great hunter and athlete. Hadrian was a man who took much pleasure in art, his villa was filled with pieces collected on his travels, and would surely have been pleased by the appearance of Antinous, who even in life is said must have resembled the statues of beauty that he is still known for. One of Hadrian's well-publicized passions was for the hunt. It is well known that under Plotina's guidance, Hadrian had become well learned and developed an appreciation for intelligent conversation such as Antinous could be expected to provide. And, of course, Antinous was a Greek. He was young enough and from a stature of enough distance from that of Hadrian that the Emperor could easily feel the superior in the relationship, but Antinous was also extraordinary enough to maintain Hadrian's attention for a period of several years. |
The Death of Antinous
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"He lost his Antinous while sailing along the Nile and wept for him like a woman. Concerning this, there are various reports: some assert that he sacrificed himself for Hadrian, others what both his beauty and Hadrian's excessive sensuality make obvious." |
Precisely what happened to Antinous in October of 130 is unknown. The Historia Augusta reports, "he [Hadrian] lost his Antinous along the Nile." Hadrian simply wrote, "He fell into the Nile." That this is all the extant written comment from the Emperor on the subject is made all the more frustrating by the fact that the word he used for "fell" can imply either an accident fall or a deliberate one. It is quite impossible to definitely pick one of these options, particuarly in light of the fact that the body of Antinous has been lost. An accidental fall seems unlikely, but it is an option that modern scholars are unable to completely disregard. Most historians prefer instead a theory of self-sacrifice. It is almost certain that the death was by drowning such as Hadrian claims as the cults of Antinous, as well as the deities to which is he often compared, proclaim. There are some that have in intervening centuries suggested death by other means, but with little to no evidence. One theory is that Antinous was a victim of a court plot and hence murdered. However, Antinous had no real power at court and absolutely no gossip relating to a murder or even strife centering on him has survived, if it ever existed. That the leading suspect in this theory seems to be the Empress Sabina seems ridiculous since Hadrian himself wrote in Antinous's epitaph of the favorite's friendship to the Empress. Another theory seems to center around a vague phrase that Antinous had lost his manhood. Rather than viewing this as a strike at his homosexual behavior, coming close to being "pathetic" as he aged, some postulate that it implies a death from complications with castration. Granted, this is the sort of thing that would be hushed, but Hadrian had been very adamant about a law that prohibited castration and since Antinous was already at least eighteen, such an operation would not have served to preserve a boyish appearance, so there was little reason for Hadrian to order it. Yet another bizarre theory is that he was disemboweled in an oracular ceremony. That Hadrian would have allowed his beloved such a grizzly and painful death seems highly unlikely and the theory is based solely on the translation of the word "hierourgetheis" found in a writing by Dio Cassius. Normally, the word would imply a sacrifice including the removal of entrails, but it is fairly likely that he used the word loosely or figuratively. But even knowing that Antinous drowned in itself tells us little. It may have been an accident. One theory purports that perhaps he was a victim of a boating accident, tipping over a small boat which he sailing. However, not only is there no evidence for this, but it would have been sheer stupidity for Antinous to have been on a small boat in the section of the Nile he is thought to have drowned in (IE that by Antinopolis) and the Nile celebrations he is theorized to have been participating in were that year very subdued on account of the low flooding. If we ignore the possibility of an accidental death, this leaves us with two options: sacrifice or suicide, or perhaps most likely, a combination thereof. It is sacrifice to which the writers of the ancient world most often seem to indicate.
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"As Christ died for to save mankind, so Antinous expired at least for the Roman Empire." -Beloved and God, Royston Lambert |
That Antinous may have sacrificed himself has much support. Firstly, he was at the time in Egypt. The last two floodings of the Nile had been unsatisfactory and there was an ancient tradition in Egypt to send a sacrifice to drown in the river as a way of influencing the river gods to send better floods in upcoming years. There was undoubtedly much talk of reviving that custom in 130 for a third drought would bring famine to Egypt, which would lead to turmoil in the Empire. That persons drowned in the Nile tended to be deified on death may well have appealed to Antinous. |
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Coins depecting the lion hunt on which Hadrain saved the life of Antinous by slaying the cat. 
Secondly, there was a theory in ancient Greece that by dying one could add years to the life of the one for whom one died. The anti-psyche, as the Greeks referred to the custom, was a furthering of the concept that love freely given has the power to heal. That Hadrian was at the time suffering from the illness that was later to kill him is quite possible and Antinous may have thought that his death would heal the Emperor, who had only days before saved Antinous's life when a hunted lion nearly felled him.
| One may well wonder why a young and vibrant man would sacrifice himself for his Emperor and for Rome. There is the obvious answer that people often do strange and illogical things for love. Antinous may well have believed that he would win immortality in the waters of the Nile and hence may not have seen his death as an end to his life. And, although there is no direct evidence that Antinous was suffering from a depression, he had to have realized that he was passing the age of eromenos. Within a year or two at most Antinous would either have to give up his position as royal favorite or accustom himself to the condemnation, "pathetic." Whatever would become of Antinous after his decline from favorite could only be a lessening of position and if he truly loved Hadrian he would undoubtedly be alarmed at the prospect of ending their relationship not only for reasons of status, but for reasons of the heart. Or, perhaps, Antinous had simply grown to feel shame at his position and was driven into the waters with a sense of helplessness and lack of self worth that could scarcely be considered rare in teenagers of any time period. For whatever reason Antinous entered the waters of the Nile, he did obtain a form of immortality. Had he passed quietly from his role as favorite he may well have disappeared from history, but with his death and Hadrian's response to it, he was assured a place in future remembrance.
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Deifying Antinous
 Statue of Osiris-Aninous from Hadrian's Villa circa 117-138 AD |
It is unclear as to who first proclaimed the deity of Antinous. Emperor Hadrian was grief stricken by the death of his favorite to the point that many contemporaries wondered if he was still able to do his job properly. It was not uncommon for the admirers of youth prematurely deceased to make a great show of despair and that Hadrian had not only lost his beloved but most likely felt deep guilt for the death, whether it was suicide, sacrifice, or a simple accident. The problem was that as Emperor, Hadrian was expected to be able to separate his private grief from his public self, which he seemed to have great difficulty doing.
It is possible that in his grief, Hadrian simply envisioned his lost Antinous as a god, perhaps after a dream. However, what seems most likely is that the Egyptians decided to bestow deity on the boy without Hadrian's influence, as it was a fairly common practice to deify those who died in the Nile. That the god Antinous is often seen as an aspect of the Egyptian god Osiris, who also drowned in the Nile, may bee seen to support this. It is certain that if the Egyptians did begin to refer to Antinous as divine that the grief burdened Emperor would have latched onto the theory. Hadrian was to remain in morning for the next eight years, ending the period only with his death. He was surrounded by sculptures of Antinous as a god and dedicated numerous temples to the new deity throughout the Empire as well as the Antinous's largest monument, the Nile city of Antinioopolis. A new star was discovered promptly after Antinous's death and given his name in the theory that it was his soul shiny down on Earth. A certain bright red flower was quickly renamed Antinoeios, wreaths of which would be given to winners in the competitions held in Antinous's name. A poet named Pancrates wrote a Homeric epic about the last lion hunt Antinous participated in, during which Hadrian had to intercede to save the boy's life. Pancrates was immediately granted a life membership into the Museion by the Emperor. Soon statues and poetry dedicated to the young god abounded.
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 Coin Portraying the Star of Antinous
| It is easy to wonder whether or not Hadrian truly believed that Antinous had joined the gods. It is, of course, difficult if not impossible to prove either way, but he did seem genuine in his observances. When considering this question, one must keep in mind that being discussed is a man seen to be a god on earth himself who was completely shattered by his grief. It does not seem far-fetched that he may well have convinced himself that the legends surrounding Antinous where true. Surely it would have been comforting for him to think that his beloved was not completely gone from the world. That the Emperor could believe that his mortal companion had transferred to a god is certainly odd, but not drastically so. The better question would be as to why other people where willing to believe in the boy-god. For the Egyptians, it was not difficult to accept the new deity. The believed he had sacrificed himself into the Nile in order to help them; worship was the least they could do for him. There was a whole pantheon of Nile gods who had entered the river to serve Osiris; they had once been human and were now minor gods. By Egyptian standards this was perfectly normal.
|  "The Country of Antinous the God"
| For the Greeks, the idea of a young local boy turned hero in the cause of love would have had an undeniable appeal. In his home province of Arcadia, Antinous was warmly accepted as an aspect of the god Hermes, the renowned mediator who was also rumored to have been born in Arcadia. Others saw in the beautiful youth aspects of the popular god Dionysos, patron of the arts, wine, cordiality, and fertility. It is important when considering the Greek acceptance of a divine Antinous to remember that they seemed to genuinely believe in Hadrian's own divinity. Temples to the Emperor abounded in the Hellenistic provinces and statues of the Emperor as a god were very far from rarities. It is not too large a step to accept a hero, beloved of a god on earth, who may have died to help said god, into the pantheon of lesser gods.
|  A Roman Bust of Antinous
| It is open to debate how willing the residents of Rome where to accept Antinous. Unlike the Greeks, the peoples of the Italian province had never seemed to view Hadrian as more than an Emperor. While it was not uncommon for a deceased Emperor to be entered into the hall of gods, it was seen as the utmost bad taste to deify and Emperor still living to take advantage of the title. It has long been an argument for a cold shoulder from Rome that the local provinces did not issue coins to Antinous as most of the outer provinces did. However, this argument is rather lacking since the provinces in question did not have the right to issue independent coinage. Although Italy seems to have had little reason to accept Antinous's initial divinity other than the will of the Emperor that he be so recognized, there is evidence that the followers of Antinous were to be found in Rome until the rise of the Christian Emperors. Whatever the actual circumstances of his death, Antinous was seen in popular myth to have died in turn for the flooding of the Nile, the Emperor Hadrian, the Hellenistic way of life, and the Roman Empire itself. And as the spread of Christianity was later to prove, there is a powerful draw of a deity was lost his human body for the good of the world, even if that world ended at the borders of the Empire.
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Hadrian After Antinous
 Antinous's Memorial Obelisk which once marked his burial spot
| The days following Antinous's death brought great emotional upheaval and strain to the Emperor. Trudging through a despair and sense of guilt, Hadrian's first impulse was to follow his beloved into the otherworld. However, Hadrian was Emperor and his life was not really his to give. So he struggled onward while the turmoil of two selves, the private and the empirical, straining against each other wrecked havoc on public affairs and Hadrian's health. It is unknown exactly what happened to the remains of Antinous. Being drowned in the Nile, his body would have been taken by the Egyptians for the embalming they believed necessary to survive in the afterlife. It is likely that Hadrian allowed this procedure to honor his beloved. The real mystery is in what happened to the body after embalming. Reports vary on the subject and to date the body of Antinous has yet to be found and identified. It is possible that he was entombed on the banks of the Nile, perhaps in the large temple that was to be the center of the city of Antinioopolis. However, it is also fairly likely that Hadrian would have objected to leaving his favorite buried in Egypt and may well have had the body transported elsewhere, perhaps to the grounds of his Italian villa. The memorial obelisk that Hadrian had constructed in honor of Antinous would do much to solve this mystery since it proclaims to mark the spot of his burial but for the fact that it was undeniably moved about by numerous Emperors. Hence, the only real clue that can be assumed from the obelisk is that the body was not left in Egypt, for the hieroglyphics it contains are thought to be a foreign attempt to imitate Egyptian writing rather than something completed by Egyptian artisans.
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 The Pecile at Hadrian's Villa A possible burial site?
| Whether or not the body of Antinous was entombed there, it was to be at least two months before Hadrian was to finally leave Egypt. Much of this time was spent planning the city of Antinioopolis and the basic tenants of the cult of Antinous. While occupying his mind with these matters, he completed his tour of Egypt, which is recorded to have lasted until the December following Antinous's death. There are no factual records of his presence from that time until the following August, when he reappeared in Greece. It is a matter of some speculation as to exactly what the Emperor was doing for those four unaccounted months. It is thought that on his way to Greece, Hadrian may have passed briefly through Judea. The exact details of several edicts affecting the Jewish peoples are confused in that they seem to have been issued sometime in either 130 or 131. If they were in fact passed in 131, they may well have been a result of Hadrian's grief. Early in his reign, Hadrian had outlawed castration. He extended this in 130 or 131 to include circumcision, a practice used by Egyptians and Arabs but of particular religious importance to the Jews. The Egyptians were later to be given certain exemptions to this law, but Hadrian showed no such favor to the Jewish. The Jewish holy city of Jerusalem was re-founded by Hadrian as a Roman colony with Greek settlers. In further disregard for Jewish beliefs, Hadrian built a temple to Jupiter on the very spot where a great Temple of the Jews, a center stone of Jewish religion, had stood. This action seems particularly out of character for Hadrian, who had in the past seemed well inclined towards the Jews and had extended much more religious tolerance towards the Christians than most other non-Christian Emperors did. This lack of regard for the Jewish people was to result in not only severe headaches for Hadrian, but in troubles that are still effecting the world nearly two thousand years later. In the summer of 131, Hadrian spent touring Greece, where he was met with a warm reception. He probably stopped briefly in Bithynion, the birth place of Antinous, where he was gifted with numerous statues of his likeness and most likely spent some time working out the rights and plans for the new cult of Antinous. Leaving Bithynion, Hadrian proceeded to Athens for the dedication of the massive temple of Olympian Zeus, a section of which was granted to the Divine Hadrian. Sometime during 131 or 132, Hadrian first began to make progress towards the establishment of the Panhellenion. The Panhellenion was a council representing the Grecian cities and colonies that did much to unify the Hellenistic world. While the Panhellenion did not have sovereignty and was subject in all things to Rome and while it spent much time on trivial matters such as festival organization, it gave the Greeks a sense of unity and self confidence.
|  Hadrian's Mausoleum
| After touring Greece Hadrian seems to have disappeared again, this time not for four months but for four years. All that is really known about his location from 132 to 136 is that on the 5th of May, 134, he wrote a letter in Rome. It is thought likely that he spent two years touring parts of his Empire, returning to Rome in early Spring, 134. In Rome, Hadrian completed his great legal codification and his mausoleum, which still stands on the banks of the Tiber and suggests a preoccupation with death. In 132, Judea had erupted in a Jewish revolt, partially triggered by Hadrian's recent anti-semantic behavior and partially fueled by centuries of Jewish unrest under Roman occupation. The revolt led to three years of bloody battles in which the Romans suffered great losses. When Julius Severus was brought from Britain to lead the Roman forces in Judea, the tide of war began to turn very slowly in favor of the Romans. At some time, probably in late 135, Hadrian was drawn into the conflict personally. By this point, Hadrian had completely lost patience with the Jews, who he had fought twice in his lifetime. After the fall of Bettir in 135, the Jewish forces collapsed. The Hadrian of old would probably have been forgiving of the survivors, who had already lost over half a million of their colleagues, however the new Hadrian came down on them with a violent vengeance. The leaders where gruesomely executed, the prisoners of war where sold off as chattel at bargain prices, and the Jewish people were banned from the city of Jerusalem. During the course of the war, the Jews had lost over nine hundred villages and over six hundred thousand lives had been lost in battles and war related complications, such as famine, disease, and fire. As had been feared by many before the uprising began, Judea was left desolate after the fighting stopped. Judea, which became Palaestina, was yanked from the influence of Judaism in a motion that can still be felt very much in our own twentieth century. After the nightmare of Judea, Hadrian returned again to Rome in 136, suffering from poor health and depression. He retired to his villa where he dictated his memoirs from beneath a statue of Antinous. Sometime in 137 is thought the Sabina died of causes unknown. While this probably did not affect Hadrian as an emotional loss, it could not have lessened his sense of mortality. Hadrian issued a series of coins commemorating his visits to thirty-eight of the provinces of the Empire in a deliberate attempt to remind the world of his good deeds as Emperor. He also did much to promote the cult of Antinous in Rome, but by 137, Hadrian's illness had become undeniable as he became delirious with pain.
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Commodus- Lucius Ceionius Aelius Caeser
| With Hadrian's obvious illness and "advanced" age (he was sixty), came another unavoidable concern. As Sabina and his personal tastes had ascertained, Hadrian had no heir. His nearest blood relative, a great-nephew names Fuscus, was at the time twenty three and in Hadrian's mind too impressionable for the throne, particularly in light of the man's devious grandfather, whom Hadrian had long held a grudge against. Instead, Hadrian adopted Lucius Commodus, who know became Aelius Ceasar, a thirty-five year old who had perhaps taken Antinous's position. The public reaction to this was one of marked opposition; it cost Hadrian quite a bit of gold to settle the populace into acceptance of the highly unsuitable heir. It has been theorized that perhaps Hadrian promoted Commodus under the assumption that he would die of the illness from which he was suffering soon after taking the throne, leaving it to his son-in-law, the vastly popular Marcus Aurelius. However, as it turned out, Commodus's illness dealt its final stroke when it drove Commodus to overdose on a medication that was supposed to have given him the strength to address the Senate on January 1st, 138, while Hadrian was still living. Hadrian was again devastated at the loss of a man who was definitely a friend and quite possibly a lover. To make matters worse, in early 138, or possibly late 137, Fuscus, enraged at being overlooked for the throne, attempted to hatch a plot against Hadrian on the advice of his grandfather. Hadrian had Fuscus executed and developed a paranoia about the motives of everyone around him. Anyone who had ever felt a hope that they would be chosen to succeed him was now fearful of the Emperor's actions as he ranted dire threats. When Hadrian insisted on the suicide of his brother-in-law for little reason, the man complied but before dying issues a cure that Hadrian would long for a death that would evade him.
|  Antoninus Pius
| On the 25th of February, in one of his increasingly rare times of sanity, Hadrian adopted as heir a Senator who was to be known as the Emperor Antoninus Pius. As part of the agreement of adoption, Hadrian insisted that Antoninus name as his heirs Commodus's son Lucius, who was betrothed to Antoninus's daughter, and Marcus Aurelius, who, despite a predisposition towards the arts was later to become Emperor. After naming Antoninus heir, Hadrian withdrew from politics and public life. True to his curse, Hadrian had lost all desire to live and his pain had reached the point of the unbearable. He turned to active attempts at suicide, but the dagger was forced from his weakened hand and the doctor he order to poison him took the poison himself rather than kill his Emperor. Enraged, Hadrian ordered the deaths of all those who stood in way of his own death, bitterly commenting that he had the power to kill everyone but himself. Antoninus calmly rescinded the orders and Hadrian continued to suffer. Finally, in Naples, Hadrian took vast amounts of medications to force an overdose. And hence he died at the age of sixty two after nearly twenty one years of rule on the 10th of July, 138, hated by all of Rome despite undeniably being one of the greatest of the Roman Emperors. After his death, when most of the people who had supposedly been victims of the bloodlust of Hadrian's last year began to crawl out of hiding and back into Roman public life, it became clear that the supposed reign of terror had been a mental paranoia rather than a reality. Even so, the Senate had to be forced by Antoninus to grant Hadrian the divine honors generally bestowed on the empirical person after death or even to allow his ashes into the Mausoleum. Like his life, Hadrian's death had much more of a heartfelt effect on the peoples of Greece, who genuinely grieved his passing while the people of Rome coldly turned their backs on his memory.
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 The Entrance to Antinioopolis, as seen in 1800 The Theatre at Antinioopolis
The Cult of Antinous was not destined to become one of the most influential, wealthy, or lasting religious sects of the late Roman Empire, but it was one of the widest spread. There are defiantly traces of public worship and recognition of the divine Antinous in some seventy cities throughout the Empire and the vast spread of his busts implies that even if worship of Antinous was not to occur in most homes of the Empire, his name and his features were well known by all.
| His obvious center of worship in Egypt was his own city, Antinioopolis, which was destined not only to be a cult center but an oasis of Greek culture on the Nile. The city was founded on October 30th, 130, by Hadrian's decree, but was not completed until after Hadrian's death. The core citizens where chosen by lottery from Ptolemais, an upper Nile city known for taking pride in its "pure" Greek heritage.
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Other Egyptian cities, including Alexandria and Hermopolis also latched on to Antinous as a popular deity. Of course, his worship was not limited to Egypt; as we have discussed, the Greek peoples also welcomed Antinous as a god. The city of Manthineia from which the settlers of Antinous's hometown, Bithynion, originated was quick to claim its connection to the new god as a "local boy done good." Athens, with its affinity for Hadrian, also took great care to recognize Antinous, as did numerous other Greek cities, such as Delphi, Olympia, Nikopolis, and, of course, Hadrianopolis. That Antinous was particularly popular at home in Asia Minor is of no mystery. He was openly exalted in twenty odd cities in the area, including the large metropolis of Nikomedia and his now holy place of birth, Bithynion. Perhaps with less zeal, Antinous was also recognized in ten Italian cities as well as Hadrian's Villa, which turned into as much a shrine to Antinous as a home to the Emperor. That relics of Antinous have been found as far away as the Danube, Holland, Portugal, Gaul, Malta, Lebanon, and the shores of the Black Sea implies that he must have had a least a few followers in these far reaches as well.
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|  Antinous-Dionysos The Divine Ephebe
| The remains of the temples of Antinous imply that they were modest buildings of small wealth. However, the god was offered daily food and drink, birth and death festivals, and a faith filled with many mysteries and initiations. While Antinous was sometimes identified with the Imperial cult, he was held in more value a deity independent of the royal family. Unlike the Imperial deities, Antinous kept his human personality on Olympus. And, as it has oft been put, the people developed a belief in Antinous (said by some to parallel a faith in Jesus) while few ever bothered to hold a belief in the Imperials. Throughout the Empire, Antinous's divinity took on several forms. Most popularly in Greece, he was frequently seen as the divine ephebe who personified the beauty and spirit of youth. On many coins, he is seen as a divine hero, a man who gained immortality and deity through value, virtue, and deed. Another aspect of Antinous is of a lesser god, an aspect of a major god. As an aspect, Antinous was generally connected with Hermes, Dionysos, Iachos, or Osiris, but could also be seen in Apollo, Pan, or various local deities. In Egypt he was most popular as a daemon. A daemon referred to a spirit who was thought to reside in a temple and to inspire prophecies, heal illness and work other miracles as well as serve as a mediator between the gods and mortals. Daemons where generally benevolent and protective, but would fight in defense of a follower and where known to occasionally take on a task of vengeance. The acts of vengeance and the warnings that under the control of a powerful necromancer a daemon could be lethal where to eventually lead in the Christian concept of the demon.
|  Antinous-Dionysos
| The characteristics of the god Antinous were similar to a number of other deities. He was seen as a mediator, much as was Hermes. Akin to Dionysos and Pan, Antinous was often seen as a patron of the arts, particularly of the stage. Also like Hermes, Pan and Dionysos, Antinous was thought to hold the power to renew life, which led to an image of Antinous as a protector of crops and live stock as well as a god of fecundity and procreation. The main role which Antinous was seen to play is similar to a great number of other deities and it speaks of his character that he was not simply lost among them. The most obvious thing about the god Antinous was that he had gained divinity by rescued Hadrian from death and then triumphing over his own death. Thus he was seen as a friend to the deceased, a guardian of the soul and an escort through the realms of Hades. Dionysos, although mostly known as a god of fertility, was also known as the "Lord of Souls" after his journey into the underworld to rescue his mother, Semele. Hermes was another famous conductor of souls who was known to have led Persephone back from the underworld to this world on the behest of her mother. Antinous also had an obvious connection to the god Osiris, who was famous for being saved from death by Isis and who latter went on to save his brothers from the underworld. The obelisk that Hadrian constructed for Antinous states that after his death Antinous was "raised again to life" to become a god, much like another deity then rising in popularity, Jesus Christ.
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| The god Antinous was a diverse deity with many facets. Although some would argue that this is a lack of focus was a detriment, it can also be seen as a strength as it allowed his cult to spread much further than a more focused worship could have. Antinous was the last great god to arise from the Roman Empire. A beautiful provincial youth who became the beloved of an Emperor and then a god, Antinous was a strikingly popular figure and a last manifestation of an Ancient spirit that would soon be lost to the world. His name is still known, his features still recognized, and his story even now kindles interest, reverence, and moral controversy. His name is paraded as both a banner of gay pride through history and as a symbol of the decadence of the Roman Empire. However, no matter what may be thought of his morals and deeds, it is very hard to argue that providing fuel for close to two millennia of debate and speculation is not a remarkable achievement for a small town Grecian boy. |
References:
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Beloved and God: The Story of Hadrian and Antinous by Royston Lambert, a marvelous book that you can order right now through Amazon.com.
Observations on the Personality and Style of Leadership of the Emperor Hadrian by Bruce Medcalf, an essay avaibable at http://www.cdc.net/~bmetcalf/hadrian.htm. The Great War between Rome and the Jews by Monsieur J. Duran, an essay available at http://www.widomaker.com/~piso/html/greatwar.html. The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, selected quotations by Karl W. Murray available at http://www.infosites.net/general/decline-and-fall/quotes.htm.
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This essay is the sole work of Andrea Marie Brokaw and is under copyright as of April the 13th, 1998.
