CELEBRATING AN ANTINOUS FACEBOOK PAGE FOR ANTINOMANIACS LIVING IN BRITAIN

WE are proud to celebrate the eighth anniversary of British Antinous Priest Martinus Campbell's Facebook page devoted to Antinous.

Below is one of his exclusive, first-person posts, and his followers are continually impressed with the scope of Martinus's knowledge and the depth of his devotion to Antinous. CLICK HERE to follow all of his posts!

Martinus writes:

Today I am showing you a UK based bust of Antinous about which I know some history. You can find it at the magnificent Hampton Court Palace, just West of London - the favoured home of King Henry the VIII and his 7 unfortunate wives.

It is Roman and created in the first century AD. Made of marble it stands 100 cm (3.28 feet) tall. It was acquired by King Charles I, of Great Britain during his ill-fated reign (1600-49).

Antinous is depicted wearing an ‘Attic’ helmet (meaning inspired by ancient Greek designs). Experts classify the attic, in this case, by the diadem-shaped band and the short neck guard. It is surmounted by a very worn sphinx resting on a wedge-shaped base. 

The sphynx’s tail divides in two at the back and forms two scrolls on the sides of the helmet. 

It is a style that Hadrian may have designed himself.

During his reign, Charles I put together an important collection of Roman antiquities. 

It is believed that this portrait bust of Antinous was acquired by Charles I around 1625 and that it was one of the marble portraits from the Gonzaga collection in Mantua, Italy, that were sold to Charles I by Duke Vincenzo II.

It is remarkable that it has survived in the Royal collection. The English Civil War (1642–1651) resulted in King Charles being beheaded and the aristocracy being  replaced by the new 'Commonwealth' republic, ruled by Oliver Cromwell.

This lasted for 5 years until Cromwell died and young King Charles II was given the throne. Like most revolutions the great houses of the exiled or executed elite were raided and looted.

Somehow this Antinous survived. Hadrian protected it. In reality it was probably too heavy to carry!

DID YOU KNOW THAT PIZZA WAS INVENTED BY AENEAS?

FEBRUARY 9th is Pizza Day ... Did you know that pizza was invented by Aeneas? The origin of pizza is in Virgil's Aeneid! The hero Aeneas sails the seas with other fugitives from Troy. They seek a new home. They are starving when they land on the shores of Italy. They only have some stale round loaves of bread to eat. They collect some "fruits of the field" (cheese? herbs? garlic?) and put these on top of the thin base. “Hey! We’re even eating our tables!” says Ascanius, the son of Aeneas. (Heus! Etiam mensas consumimus inquit Iulus!) Immediately, Aeneas remembers a prophecy: When you arrive at a place so tired and hungry that you eat your tables, you will know you have reached your promised land. Antinous remembers this story when he and Hadrian order pizza ... delivered by their lararium winged genius! So when you eat pizza, remember to quote the words of the son of Aeneas: Heus! Etiam mensas consumimus!

I FOUND THE ANTINOUS TEMPLE OF BITHYNIUM-CLAUDIOPOLIS! By FLAMEN ANTINOALIS ANTONIUS SUBIA

I AM not even sure what I was searching for at the time, but I literally stumbled onto the location of the mysterious Temple of Antinous in his hometown in the city of Claudiopolis that is now known as Bolu, Turkey.

(See the photos at the bottom of this entry.)

It was in a Turkish language website but had a map of excavations made in 1978. I recognized a familiar name, Antinoos and the turkish word "Mabeti" which means Sanctuary. 

With the aid of the drawing, it was easy to locate its location with google maps. It is located on a hill top that may have once been the citadel of Bithynium-Claudiopolis and the sacred precinct. 

Below to the left or east is the town center where the ancient agora and administrative town center was and still is today. 

On the south, or "sunny side" at the bottom of the hill, are the remains of a stadium. An inscription in Greek was found along the steps of the stadium which names Hadrian as its builder. 

The website says that a frieze and a column were found at the Antinous sanctuary that are now located in the Bolu Museum. I found what I think they mean to be the frieze, which has an inscription in Greek that names Hadrian.

I cannot find exactly what column they are referring to that specifies that it was found at this location ... there are a few pieces of columns that are displayed with the frieze,

The Stadium was where the Sacred Games of Antinous took place in Bithynium-Claudiopolis. What is interesting is that the Temple or Santuary of Antinous was located right above the stadium, overlooking it, so that it would seem to be watching over the games.

From the google satellite image we can see regularly spaced dots, no idea what these are but they must be very large, like maybe the bases of columns, but they are not arranged in a recognizable temple shape. 

If they are column bases, perhaps they were like a crypt level that held up the floor of a temple above, or perhaps it was a "hypostyle" temple like you see in Egypt. 

The only other description on the map says "Su Deposu" which means "water tank" ... very mysterious. So was this part of the ancient temple? Was there a water feature, fountains, an artificial stream? 

The tank was at the highest point on the hill, was this part of the Antinous temple, or just the drinking water tank for the hilltop complex ... or was it both? How was it supplied?

Our friend and Cappel Meister, Dorian Agaric, recently visited Bolu. He visited the museum and as I recall mentioned seeing the steps of the Stadium. But I do not think he knew how close he was to the actual TEMPLE OF ANTINOUS BITHYNIUM-CLAUDIOPOLIS ... I would love to hear what his recollections are about visiting the sacred city.

The only way we are ever going to know what is going on there on that hill is for someone to go there and see for themselves, because I don't think we are going to information for casual visitors. There will be fences to jump over and authorities to avoid ... most likely, from what you can tell by looking at the latest depressing streetview images of that area ... I doubt anyone will even care.

For me this is one of the most important discoveries of my life, to see it for myself where the original temple of Antinous was in his home town ... a place that we can visit and connect with our ancient ancestors who were members of our religion.

Now we know where one of the most important temples of our Religion was located.

May Antinous bless us with this knowledge,
and why it was given to us now

~FLAMEN SUBIA

Pic1-The 1978 Map

Pic2 -Google map with my outline where the temple is

Pic3- The Stadium steps

Pic4-closeup of steps

Pic5- This is a drawing of where the Antinous Temple was 

(not made by me)

Pic6-Frieze which names Hadrian, 

which we assume is the one referred to on the website

Pic7-most depressing picture of all...

what this site currently looks like....

according to Google Street View

Pic8-map of city center of Bolu, "A" marks the spot

Pic9-My coin that shows a very weathered 

but still recognizable image of Hadrian on the front 

and a clear image of a temple on the back 

that says BEITHINIAS

WE PRAY TO ANTINOUS/DIANA TO GUIDE US IN OUR HUNT BY MOONBEAMS

TONIGHT, February 7th,  is one of the festivals of Diana goddess of the Moon and hunting in her guise as lunar deity Selene. 

She is goddess of wild places and wild animals and the protector of young women, pregnant women and those giving birth. 

Diana is the twin sister of Apollo. 

As Antinous is often assimilated to Apollo, he therefore substitutes as the twin of Diana, though he can often be viewed as her male double, so that Antinous is Diana. 

Antinous and Diana are both hunters, and moon deities, and they are also gods of magic and darkness. 

Diana is often compared to Hecate, the supreme goddess of Theurgian magicians, who rose to prominence during the reign of Marcus Aurelius. 

Antinous therefore is the male equivalent of Hecate.

ANTONIUS SUBIA says: "We pray to Diana to guide us in our hunt and to illuminate our nights with the silver light of her sublime power. We recognize that the Moon of Diana is the Moon of Antinous."

WEREWOLVES WERE WELL-KNOWN IN THE DAYS OF ANTINOUS

FEBRUARY 6th is National Werewolf Day, when we remember that even a man who is pure in heart ... and who says his prayers by night ... can become a wolf when the wolfsbane blooms ... and the Moon is full and bright.

It is difficult to say precisely when the story of the werewolf first developed, but wolf-men were well-known in Greek and Roman times. 

The twins Romulus and Remus had been suckled by a she-wolf, and so the idea of the human/wolf hybrid was ingrained in the Roman psyche from an early date.

Shape-shifters were quite common in Greek and Roman mythology.

One of the very earliest depictions of a wolf-man is on an Etruscan Black Figure Plate from the 5th Century BC with decoration representing Hercules pursuing the centaur Nessos in the presence of Deianira ... and at center a wolf-man.

Usually, the metamorphosis from human to animal form often occurred as a direct result of divine punishment ... the gods condemning an individual on the basis of pride, boastfulness or blasphemy.

Pliny the Elder described the lycanthropic shape shifting of a man into a wolf by the gods following an act of cannibalism.

Early in the 1st Century AD, the Roman poet Ovid wrote "Metamorphoses," in which which King Lycaon (from whom we get the term "Lycanthrope") offended the gods by serving them human flesh.

Wanting to see if Zeus/Jupiter was truly omniscient, he slaughtered men and served them for dinner.

In return, Zeus turned Lycaon into a man-wolf and killed his 50 sons with lightning bolts. He is shown here holding a wicked meat axe.

Forget the Hollywood full-moon myths ... a werewolf can change at any time ... if the wolf-man has the right clothes! Some ancient myths speak of cloaks or belts which enable a human to become a wolf.

In the "Satyricon," Petronius writes of such a transformation: "And when I looked for him ... I was appalled to see he had stripped off naked and placed his queer garments by the roadside ... whereupon he walked in a circle round the heap of clothes, urinating a protective ring about them upon the ground ... and then ... as I watched in dread ... he transformed into a wolf!"

Emperor Hadrian had a fascination for magic and strange customs ... he must have told Antinous many weird bedtime tales of uncanny things he had heard in his travels.

ANTINOUS HOLDS YOU IN HIS HEART AND SENDS YOU LOVING SUPPORT

MILLIONS of LGBTIQ people are feeling angry, depressed, isolated, frightened and abandoned in these troubled days.

Remember always that #Antinous holds you in his heart ... Antinous sends gratitude and love to you for all you do and for being you. 

Here are a few survival tips:

- If you are feeling depressed, isolated, scared, remember that you aren't alone. Reach out for support. If you don't know who can support you, send priests of Antinous a message. We are here and can also refer you to other places. 

- Avoid burnout while resisting. Find a sustainable way to resist. Sign a petition, write a letter, go to a demonstration, donate money if you can, reach out and talk to people. Do what you can and remember that this will be a long struggle. Keep yourself strong. 

- Act locally ... do something concrete to help people who are struggling right now. Stay connected to community. 

- Practice self care. Do things that keep you grounded, strong, and healthy.

- Limit consumption of depressing news and posts. Stay informed, but don't overdo it. 

- Remember the beautiful things in life. Don't ignore what is hard. Just remind yourself that there is much beauty and much love in the world. 

Wherever you are, whatever woes beset you, take heart because #Antinous promises that #LoveWins! #LoveAlwaysWins. 

THE RIDDLE OF THE ROMAN DODECAHEDRON IS UNRAVELED AT LAST BY NIMBLE FINGERS

MORE than 100 of these strange objects are known to exist, and their purpose remains a puzzling mystery that has baffled archaeologists since their first discovery.

All throughout Europe, small geometric objects known as Roman dodecahedrons have been recovered. 

As far north as Hadrian's Wall, and further south toward the Mediterranean, the dodecahedrons, usually made of bronze or stone, are seldom larger than about eight to ten centimeters in size. 

So what was their purpose?

No written records mention them, and experts have come up with many suggestions.

They could have been gaming pieces or weapons or even impediments strewn ahead of invading armies to cripple cavalry horses.

Others have speculated that they may hold religious or cultural significance, and some have gone so far as to presume they could have been useful in determining the proper times for planting various crops throughout the year.

But was there a simpler and more practical use … a use that was literally at our fingertips?

And for one man, this kind of practical thinking led him to finding a unique use for the Roman dodecahedrons… as well as a possible solution to their creation in ancient times.

In the video below, YouTube user Martin Hallett offers his own thoughts about what the Roman dodecahedrons might have been used for, demonstrating a fascinating potential solution to their design … and an interesting, but creative outcome as well.

Using a 3D printer, he had a scale replica of one of the dodecahedrons made, and then went to work experimenting… with knitting yarn.

His breakthrough came when he realized the holes in the dodecahedron always come in five different sizes ... just as human fingers always come in five different sizes. 

He deduced that these strange objects must have served some practical purpose related to fingers.

And the answer was indeed right at his fingertips ….