Bagoas (

Old Persian Old Persian is one of the two directly attested Old Iranian languages (the other being Avestan language, Avestan) and is the ancestor of Middle Persian (the language of Sasanian Empire). Like other Old Iranian languages, it was known to its native ...

: ''Bagāvahyā'', grc, Βαγώας ''Bagōas'') was the name of two

eunuchs A eunuch ( ) is a male who has been castrated. Throughout history, castration often served a specific social function. The earliest records for intentional castration to produce eunuchs are from the Sumerian city of Lagash in the 2nd millennium ...

in the court of the

Persian Empire The Achaemenid Empire or Achaemenian Empire (; peo, wikt:𐎧𐏁𐏂𐎶, 𐎧𐏁𐏂, , ), also called the First Persian Empire, was an History of Iran#Classical antiquity, ancient Iranian empire founded by Cyrus the Great in 550 BC. Bas ...

in the 4th century BC. Bagoas the Younger was a courtier of Darius and later of

Alexander the Great Alexander III of Macedon ( grc, wikt:Ἀλέξανδρος, Ἀλέξανδρος, Alexandros; 20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the Ancient Greece, ancient Greek kingdom of Maced ...

Bagoas' kiss

According to

Plutarch Plutarch (; grc-gre, Πλούταρχος, ''Ploútarchos''; ; – after AD 119) was a Greek Middle Platonist philosopher, historian, biographer, essayist, and priest at the Temple of Apollo in Delphi. He is known primarily for his ''P ...

, Bagoas won a dancing contest after the Macedonian crossing of the Gedrosian Desert. The Macedonian troops, with whom Bagoas was very popular, demanded that king Alexander should kiss Bagoas, and he did so.

Fictionalized versions

* Bagoas is the narrator and title character of ''

The Persian Boy ''The Persian Boy'' is a 1972 historical novel written by Mary Renault and narrated by Bagoas, a young Persian from an aristocratic family who is captured by his father's enemies, castrated, and sold as a slave to king Darius III, who makes ...

'', the

historical novel Historical fiction is a literary genre in which the plot takes place in a setting related to the past events, but is fictional. Although the term is commonly used as a synonym for historical fiction literature, it can also be applied to other ty ...

Mary Renault Eileen Mary Challans (4 September 1905 – 13 December 1983), known by her pen name Mary Renault ("She always pronounced it 'Ren-olt', though almost everyone would come to speak of her as if she were a French car." ), was an English writer best ...

, which portrays him sympathetically. He reappears in a smaller but still significant role in the sequel ''Funeral Games''. *
The Serpent's Oath
' (2021) by A.R. Valeson portrays a historical fiction romance between King Henry VIII's Master Secretary, Thomas Cromwell and the eunuch, Arthamaeus, inspired by the courtier Bagoas. * He makes an even briefer appearance in ''Les Conquêtes d'Alexandre'' by Roger Peyrefitte. Peyrefitte, unlike Mary Renault, has Bagoas riding to battle by the side of Darius. *He is also a major character in

Jo Graham Jo, jo, JO, or J.O. may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Jo'' (film), a 1972 French comedy * ''Jo'' (TV series), a French TV series *"Jo", a song by Goldfrapp from ''Tales of Us'' *"Jo", a song by Mr. Oizo from ''Lambs Anger'' * Jo a fictio ...

's novel ''Stealing Fire'', part of her Numinous World series. Graham's Bagoas is basically the same as Mary Renault's, except that he is more willing to find a new lover after the death of Alexander the Great. * He is played by

Francisco Bosch Francisco Bosch (born 5 October 1982) is a Spanish actor and dancer. He was born in Valencia. His interest in dance began when his grandmother took him to a meeting of her flamenco group when he was five years old. He began his dance training a ...

in the

Oliver Stone William Oliver Stone (born September 15, 1946) is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. Stone won an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay as writer of '' Midnight Express'' (1978), and wrote the gangster film remake '' Sc ...

film ''

Alexander Alexander is a male given name. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here are Aleksandar, Al ...

'' (2004), which is based in part on Renault's writings.

Notes

Sources

* * * *{{cite book , volume=I , translator=John Digby , publication-place=London, United Kingdom , year=1714 , via=

Archive.org The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...

, author-link=Quintus Curtius Rufus , title=

Histories of Alexander the Great The ''Histories of Alexander the Great'' ( la, Historiae Alexandri Magni) is the only surviving extant Latin biography of Alexander the Great. It was written by the Roman historian Quintus Curtius Rufus in the 1st-century AD, but the earliest su ...

, publisher=W.B. for Bernard Lintott , collaboration=Foreword by Johann Freinsheim , first=Quintus Curtius , last=Rufus

External links

"Bagoas Pleads on Behalf of Nabarzanes,"
illuminated parchment by the Master of the Jardin de vertueuse consolation, in the collection of the J. Paul Getty Museum Ancient LGBT people Male lovers of royalty People from the Achaemenid Empire Iranian eunuchs Trierarchs of Nearchus' fleet Lovers of Alexander the Great Courtiers of Alexander the Great 4th-century BC people Ancient slaves