A gleaming new city rises from the desert on the banks of the Nile in the 2nd Century AD.
Julius Fidus Aquila oversees construction of the city of ANTINOOPOLIS at Hadrian's personal command.
At his side is a centurion wearing the Lorica Segmentata ... and a slave who clearly thanks the Gods that he is only serving beverages ... and not toiling in the hot Egyptian sun.
The city rose on the shores of the Nile where Antinous died in October 130 AD during an Imperial tour of Egypt. Hadrian had arrived in Egypt intent on founding a city ... as Alexander the Great had done ... and as Hadrian had done. The death and deification of ANTINOUS THE GAY GOD turned Hadrian's plan into reality.
Antinoopolis became a model of Hadrian's dreams for creating the perfect civilization based on Hellenistic principles of tolerance, beauty and learning.
Financial and economic incentives encouraged influential people to move to and invest in the city ...
Great colonnaded streets were lined with fine homes and merchants offering wares from throughout the empire ...
Magnificent temples and a large theater were constructed of the finest stone ...
A hippodrome modeled on Rome's Circus Maximus served as the focal point of Games held in honor of Antinous which drew athletes, poets and artists from all corners of the empire to compete for riches and honorary citizenship in the city.
It was the capital city of the Thebais district in the heart of Egypt ... a center of commerce, art, learning and religious fervor for centuries to come .
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