Antinous as Silvanus

Antinous as Silvanus (detail)

590
This marble relief fragment (130–138) shows Antinous, beloved of Emperor Hadrian, portrayed as Silvanus, the Roman god of woods and fields. In this close-up, the youthful figure gathers grapes, while a small altar with a pinecone—Silvanus’s symbol—anchors the scene. After Antinous drowned in the Nile, Hadrian deified him, inspiring a widespread cult. This relief, restored in the 18th c., reflects both his idealized beauty and the pastoral serenity linked to Silvanus.