OFH Throwback- Episode #72 - Did Emperor Hadrian Murder His Teenage Lover?

April 1, 2025·1 hr 10 min·5 clips

Was Antinous's death a human sacrifice ritual to save Hadrian's life, as some historians claim?

A pitch starts the whole thing. Sebastian remembers a Canadian Opera Company friend suggesting Hadrian and Antinous as Roman history with podcast potential. Not the usual way in, which helps. The hook is Rufus Wainwright's opera, a possible bit of synergy, and the host following a story with teeth. Then Rome takes over. Hadrian's route to power runs through Trajan, Plotina, Vibia Sabina, and a marriage meant to pull the imperial family tighter together. Plotina matters. Sebastian treats her as a political force, the kind of figure many historians see behind Hadrian's rise. Maybe she backed his ideas. She may have shared his vision of Roman identity spread across the empire through Greco-Roman culture. Maybe she was protecting herself. If Hadrian became emperor, Plotina's family and other Spanish-Roman elites stayed close to power. The sources do not behave. The Historia Augusta says Trajan chose Hadrian years earlier and used Nerva's old ring to make the point. Nice and tidy. Sebastian is wary of that, since the official history has the smell of state propaganda built to legitimize imperial power. Dio makes it messier, pointing toward unsettled politics around Trajan's death. That is where the episode gets interesting. A lurid question about Hadrian's teenage lover opens into who gains when history gets cleaned up. Even the outro keeps it personal, with Sebastian thanking supporters, hinting at life changes, talking music, and returning to the show's point that false stories can still feel real.

Listen to the show on

Apple Podcasts Spotify

Play clips from this episode More from Our Fake History