Ganymede

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Ganymede was a term sometimes used to refer to passive gay men or youths. It derives from the mythological figure Ganymede (Ancient Greek Γανυμήδης, Ganymēdēs) a Trojan prince whom the god Zeus, in the form of an eagle, carried off to be his cup-bearer on Mount Olympus.

"He [ Francis Bacon ] was a Pederast. His Ganimeds and Favourites tooke Bribes."[1]

In Latin (via Etruscan) the name was redered as Catamitus, hence the more common term Catamite.

References

  1. Oliver Lawson Dick, ed. Aubrey's Brief Lives. Edited from the Original Manuscripts, 1949, s.v. "Francis Bacon, Viscount of St. Albans" p. 11.