M/M: The Death of Antinous, Beloved of Hadrian, Cassius Dio Epit. LXIX.11

Hadrian and Antinous

Name:  Cassius Dio Date:     155 – 235 CE  Region:   Nicaea [modern Turkey] Citation:      Roman History 69.11.3-4

Hadrian honored Antinous by creating a city in the place where he died, and bringing settlers to live there. He also placed statues (or rather, cult statues) of him in nearly every corner of the Empire. Finally, he even claimed to see a comet which was Antinous reborn, and listened desperately to his cronies who made up stories claiming that the heavenly object was Antinous' soul rising into the heavens, and that the comet had never previously appeared.

καὶ οὕτω γε τὸν Ἀντίνοον... ἐτίμησεν ὡς καὶ πόλιν ἐν τῷ χωρίῳ, ἐν ᾧ τοῦτ᾽ ἔπαθε, καὶ συνοικίσαι καὶ ὀνομάσαι ἀπ᾽ αὐτοῦ. καὶ ἐκείνου ἀνδριάντας ἐν πάσῃ ὡς εἰπεῖν τῇ οἰκουμένῃ, μᾶλλον δὲ ἀγάλματα, ἀνέθηκε. καὶ τέλος ἀστέρα τινὰ αὐτός τε ὁρᾶν ὡς καὶ τοῦ Ἀντινόου ὄντα ἔλεγε καὶ τῶν συνόντων οἱ μυθολογούντων ἡδέως ἤκουεν ἔκ τε τῆς ψυχῆς τοῦ Ἀντινόου ὄντως τὸν ἀστέρα γεγενῆσθαι καὶ τότε πρῶτον ἀναπεφηνέναι.

Itaque Antinoum, ... tanto honore affecit; ut urbem in eo loco, in quo ille obiisset, colonis adductis conditam, ex eo nominari voluerit; statuasque ei, el potius simulacra, in omni fere orbe terrarum dedicaverit. Denique tum ipse quoddam se videre sidus aiebat, quod esset Antinoi; tum familiares idem fabulose fingentes libenter audiebat, quasi scilicet ex Antinoi anima vere sidus istud exortum esset, ac tunc primum adparuisset.  Translated into Latin by Hermann Samuel Reimarus

Cassius Dio [Lucius Cassius Dio; 165 – 235 CE, modern Turkey] was a Roman statesman born in Nicaea, Bithynia [modern Turkey] who wrote an 80 volume work on Roman history that spanned from Aeneas’ flight from Troy to the rise of the emperor Severus Alexander. Although much of his history is lost, the fragments that we do have show rare insight into the Roman world.

W/W: The Women from Lesbos, Lucian, Dialog. Meret. 5.1

Name: Lucian Date: 125 – 180 CE Region: [modern Turkey] Citation:  Dialogues of the Courtesans 5.1

Clonarium and Leaena Discuss Leaena's New Lover:

Clonarium: Leaena, what’s this I hear about you and this rich Lesbian girl named Megilla? Is it true that she loves you like a man, that you are dating each other, and doing God knows what else? What is going on? What, are you blushing? Tell me, is it true or what?

Leaena: It’s true, Clonarium, but it’s odd to talk about it. It’s a very strange situation.

Clonarium:  By God, what’s going on? What does the woman want? What are you two doing together, when you go out? If you loved me, you wouldn’t hide such things from me.

Leaena: I love you more than any other woman. But I love her, too, but as a man.

Clonarium: I don’t understand whatever it is that you’re saying. Is she a lesbian? Is that it? They say that there are such women in Lesbos, who don’t want to be with men, but instead want to be with women, and date women like men.

Leaena: Exactly.

Κλωνάριον

καινὰ περὶ σοῦ ἀκούομεν, ὦ Λέαινα, τὴν Λεσβίαν Μέγιλλαν τὴν πλουσίαν ἐρᾶν σου ὥσπερ ἄνδρα καὶ συνεῖναι ὑμᾶς οὐκ οἶδ᾽ ὅ τι ποιούσας μετ᾽ ἀλλήλων. τί τοῦτο; ἠρυθρίασας; ἀλλ᾽ εἰπὲ εἰ ἀληθῆ ταῦτά ἐστιν.

Λέαινα

ἀληθῆ, ὦ Κλωνάριον: αἰσχύνομαι δέ, ἀλλόκοτον γάρ τί ἐστι.

Κλωνάριον

πρὸς τῆς κουροτρόφου τί τὸ πρᾶγμα, ἢ τί βούλεται ἡ γυνή; τί δὲ καὶ πράττετε, ὅταν συνῆτε; ὁρᾷς; οὐ φιλεῖς με: οὐ γὰρ ἂν ἀπεκρύπτου τὰ τοιαῦτα.

Λέαινα

φιλῶ μέν σε, εἰ καί τινα ἄλλην. ἡ γυνὴ δὲ δεινῶς ἀνδρική ἐστιν.

Κλωνάριον

οὐ μανθάνω ὅ τι καὶ λέγεις, εἰ μή τις ἑταιρίστρια τυγχάνει οὖσα: τοιαύτας γάρ ἐν Λέσβῳ λέγουσι γυναῖκας ἀρρενωπούς, ὑπ᾽ ἀνδρῶν μὲν οὐκ ἐθελούσας αὐτὸ πάσχειν, γυναιξὶ δὲ αὐτὰς πλησιαζούσας ὥσπερ ἄνδρας. 

Λέαινα
τοιοῦτόν τι.

Clonarium: nova quaedam de te audimus Leana, Lesbiam videlicet Megillam divitem illam, amare te, perinde ut virum, et coire vos, nescio quid mutuo vobis facientes. Quid istud? erubuisti? sed dic mihi, verane ista sunt?

Leaena: Vera Clonarium: pudet autem dicere. Alienum enim quiddam est.

Clonarium: At per Cererem, quid hoc negotiis aut quid sibi vult mulier? Quid autem etiam agitis, quando coitis? Vides, haudquaquam amas me, neque enim celares me talia.
Leaena: Amo equidem te, quantum ullam aliam. Mulier autem illa, virilis supra modum est.
Clonarium: Non intelligo, quidnam etiam dicas, nisi si tribas quaepiam est. Tales enim in Lesbo perhibent mulieres esse, quae a viris quidem pati illud nolint, cum mulieribus autem ipsae, perinde ac viri solent, congrediantur.
Leaena. Tale quippiam est.

Translated from the Greek by Michaelis Vascosanus

Lucian [Lucianus Samosatensis; 125 – 180 CE, modern Turkey] was a Roman satirist from Samosata [modern Turkey] who wrote in ancient Greek. His works are a mixture of sarcasm, wit, and biting social criticism. He is without a doubt one of the most popular authors of the later Roman empire.

Megillus' Story: Lucian, Dial. Meretric. 5.2-3

Megillus’ Story

Name: Lucian Date: 125 – 180 CE Region: [modern Turkey] Citation:  Dialogues of the Courtesans 5.3-4

Leaena Tells Her Friend Clonarium about Her Conversation with Megillus:

 

When Megilla grew warm, they took off the very realistic wig they were wearing, revealing a shaved head, with hair as short as an athlete's.  When I saw this, I was surprised.

But then Demonassa said, “Have you ever seen a more beautiful man?”

And I said, “I don’t see any man here, Megilla.”

And he said, “Don’t think of me as a woman, for I am called Megillus, and I have married this woman Demonassa, and she is my wife.”

I laughed at this, and then I said, “Megilla, did you pull off what Achilles [1] did, and being a man, hide among women? Do you have man parts? Or what about--?”

 “No, Leaena,” she said, “I was born similar to you women. But my mind and orientation and everything else about me is male.” 

 

---

[1] Before the Trojan War, Achilles lived on the island of Skyros as a woman named Pyrrha in the court of Princess Deidamia. 

χρόνῳ δὲ ἡ Μέγιλλα ὑπόθερμος ἤδη οὖσα τὴν μὲν πηνήκην ἀφείλετο τῆς κεφαλῆς, ἐπέκειτο δὲ πάνυ ὁμοία καὶ προσφυής, καὶ ἐν χρῷ ὤφθη αὐτὴ καθάπερ οἱ σφόδρα ἀνδρώδεις τῶν ἀθλητῶν ἀποκεκαρμένη: κἀγὼ ἐταράχθην ἰδοῦσα. ἡ δέ, Ὦ Λέαινα, φησίν, ἑώρακας ἤδη οὕτω καλὸν νεανίσκον; ἀλλ᾽ οὐχ ὁρῶ γε, ἔφην ἐγώ, νεανίσκον ἐνταῦθα, ὦ Μέγιλλα. μή με καταθήλυνε, ἔφη, Μέγιλλος γὰρ ἐγὼ λέγομαι καὶ γεγάμηκα πρόπαλαι ταύτην τὴν Δημώνασσαν, καὶ ἔστιν ἐμὴ γυνή.

Megilla cum iam incaluisset, comam, ut illam quidem fictitiam habebat, a capite reiecit, ipsa autem iacebat omnino similis, atque aequiparanda gladiatori alicui vehementer virili, atque robusto, ad vivum usque cute detonsa. Ac ego quidem, ubi aspexi, perterrita sum. “Illa vero,” Leaena inquit, “ecquidem adolescentem, unquam vidisti ita pulchrum?” “At non video, inquam ego, ullum hic adolescentem, Megilla.” Tum illa, “ne me, inquit, effemines, aut mulierem facias: Megillus enim vocor ego, et iam olim Demonassam hanc uxorem duxi, estque ea uxor mea.”

ἐγέλασα, ὦ Κλωνάριον, ἐπὶ τούτῳ καὶ ἔφην, Οὐκοῦν σύ, ὦ Μέγιλλε, ἀνήρ τις ὢν ἐλελήθεις ἡμᾶς, καθάπερ τὸν Ἀχιλλέα φασὶν ἐν ταῖς παρθένοις κρυπτόμενον ταῖς ἁλουργίσι; ...  οὔκουν, ὦ Λέαινα, ἔφη, ἀλλὰ ἐγεννήθην μὲν ὁμοία ταῖς ἄλλαις ὑμῖν, ἡ γνώμη δὲ καὶ ἡ ἐπιθυμία καὶ τἆλλα πάντα ἀνδρός ἐστί μοι.

Risi equidem ad haec, Clonarium, atque proinde “Megilla, latuisti,” inquam, “tu nos, vir existens, quemadmodum Achillem aiunt, inter virgines absconditum latuisse, habesque virile illud?...” “Haudquaquam,” Leaena inquit, “sed nata equidum sum similis vobis aliis. Sententia autem et libido ceteraque omnia virilia mihi sunt.”  Translated into Latin by Jacob Micyllus

Lucian [Lucianus Samosatensis; 125 – 180 CE, modern Turkey] was a Roman satirist from Samosata [modern Turkey] who wrote in ancient Greek. His works are a mixture of sarcasm, wit, and biting social criticism. He is without a doubt one of the most popular authors of the later Roman empire.

Not Doing What They're Told: Women Subverting Gender Roles in Seneca, Epist. XCV.20-21

Name:  Seneca the Younger Date:   4 BCE – 65 CE Region:   Corduba, Hispania [modern Spain] Citation:   Epistl.95.20-21

[Hippocrates] the greatest doctor and founding father of our craft stated that women did not lose their hair nor suffer from foot problems. But nevertheless they do. The nature of womanhood did not change, but instead was conquered, for now women rival men in men's indulgences, and so they suffer men's illnesses. They stay up late at night just like men, they drink as much as men, they rival men in sports and drinking games.  They vomit from too much alcohol like men, they gnaw on ice to quell their heartburn. They even rival men in their lust, --damn them!--they were born to serve and submit [pati natae]! Therefore, why are we surprised that the greatest medical mind is caught in a mistruth, knowing that there are so many women with bald heads and gout in their feet? They have lost the benefit of their gender by their own vices, and, because they have stripped off the label of womanhood, they are damned with manly diseases.

Maximus ille medicorum et huius scientiae conditor feminis ne capillos defluere dixit nec pedes laborare; atqui et capillis destituuntur et pedibus aegrae sunt. Non mutata feminarum natura, sed victa est; nam cum virorum licentiam aequaverint, corporum quoque virilium incommoda aequarunt. Non minus pervigilant, non minus potant, et oleo et mero viros provocant; aeque invitis ingesta visceribus per os reddunt et vinum omne vomitu remetiuntur; aeque nivem rodunt, solacium stomachi aestuantis. Libidine vero ne maribus quidem cedunt, pati natae, di illas deaeque male perdant! ...Quid ergo mirandum est maximum medicorum ac naturae peritissimum in mendacio prendi, cum tot feminae podagricae calvaeque sint? Beneficium sexus sui vitiis perdiderunt et, quia feminam exuerant, damnatae sunt morbis virilibus. 

Seneca the Younger [Lucius Annaeus Seneca; 4 BCE – 65 CE, modern Spain] Originally from Corduba, Hispania, Seneca the Younger was a Roman statesman with a tumultuous career. First exiled to the island of Corsica by the emperor Claudius, he was later recalled and became the emperor Nero’s mentor and tutor. Seneca wrote prolifically in several genres, including Stoic philosophy and Roman tragedies. He was ultimately put to death by the emperor Nero for his participation in the Pisonian Conspiracy of 65 CE. 

Ace and Proud: Minerva's War Cry: Joseph of Exeter's de Bello Troiano 2.341 - 342

Minerva’s Warcry

Name:  Joseph of Exeter Date:  12th century CE Region:  Exeter [modern England] Citation:  The Trojan War 2.341 – 345

Minerva proclaims:

“My chastity alone pleases me, that I have not encountered romance,

And I will not threaten marriages or relationships.

Look here, Paris, my prowess impresses men,

My weaving impresses women,

My songs impress the laurel crowned poets.

I enjoy the love of them both! I am loved by all.”

Minerva’s Warcry

Virginitas me sola iuvat, nil passa pudendum,
non laesura toros, non deprensura maritos.
Macte, Paris, mea bella viri, mea pensa puellae,
et mea laurigeri meditantur carmina vates:
sic populis utrisque fruor, sic grata per omnes.

Joseph of Exeter [Josephus Iscanius; 12th c. CE, modern England] was a British nobleman who joined his uncle on campaign on the Third Crusade (1189 – 1192 CE). Although not everything he wrote survives, he is most known for his book On The Trojan War, a six- volume epic poem about the fall of Troy.

M/M: Hard to Get: Martial, Epig. 5.83

Playing Hard to Get: Martial and Dindymus

Name: Martial Date: c. 40 – 100 CE Region: Bilbilis, Hispania [modern Spain] Citation: Epigrams 5.83

You flirt, I play hard to get.
You play hard to get, I flirt.
This is my mindset, Dindymus,
I don't want to want to be yours,
I want to not want you.

Playing Hard to Get: Martial and Dindymus

Insequeris, fugio; fugis, insequor. Haec mihi mens est:

velle tuum nolo, Dindyme, nolle volo.

Martial [Marcus Valerius Martialis; 38 BCE – 102 CE, modern Spain] Originally from Bilbilis, Hispania, the poet Martial moved to Rome in the 60s CE to advance his career. His two extant works include de Spectaculis, a collection of poems written to commemorate the opening of the Colosseum, and a fifteen volume collection of epigrams. These poems provide valuable insight into the private lives of Romans from all of the city’s social classes.

M/M: Counting Kisses: Martial, Epig. 6.34

Counting Kisses: Martial’s Remix To His Boyfriend

Name: Martial Date: c. 40 – 100 CE Region: Bilbilis, Hispania [modern Spain] Citation: Epigrams 6.34

Diadumenus, give me rapid-fire kisses. How many, you ask?

You order me to count the waves of the Ocean,

And the number of shells scattered on the Aegean beaches,

And the number of bees wandering over the Athenian hills,

And the number of voices and applause heard in an amphitheater whenever Caesar suddenly appears.

I don't want the amount that Lesbia gave to her Catullus, who made a similar request:

A number of kisses that can be counted is not enough!

Counting Kisses: Martial’s Remix To His Boyfriend

Basia da nobis, Diadumene, pressa. "Quot?" inquis.
Oceani fluctus me numerare iubes
et maris Aegaei sparsas per litora conchas
et quae Cecropio monte vagantur apes,
quaeque sonant pleno vocesque manusque theatro
cum populus subiti Caesaris ora videt.
Nolo quot arguto dedit exorata Catullo
Lesbia: pauca cupit qui numerare potest.

Martial [Marcus Valerius Martialis; 38 BCE – 102 CE, modern Spain] Originally from Bilbilis, Hispania, the poet Martial moved to Rome in the 60s CE to advance his career. His two extant works include de Spectaculis, a collection of poems written to commemorate the opening of the Colosseum, and a fifteen volume collection of epigrams. These poems provide valuable insight into the private lives of Romans from all of the city’s social classes.