The love story between the god Apollo and the mortal man Hyacinthus is a myth that was important to Greek and Roman religion and tradition.

There is evidence of complex gender identities in Ancient Mesopotamia, particularly in the cult of the goddess Inanna and her priests.

The homoerotic relationship between Nisus and Euryalus in the Aeneid is an example of a shared love and bond between two men in the epic.