One of the more celebrated cases of pederasty was the love affair between Emperor Hadrian (76-138 AD) and Antinous, the young Greek man. Antinous was the rival of Plotina, Hadrian's mistress.
After Antinous drowned in the Nile, Hadrian's grief was so acute that he placed his lover alongside the gods in rank. Apparently, the Emperor erected a temple altar dedicated to the memory of the young man. In 130 AD, he founded a city at the spot where the youth had drowned and named it Antinouopolis or Antinoe.
