text: The episode then formed the basis of the cyclic epic Aethiopis, which was composed after the Iliad, possibly in the 7th century BC.The Aethiopis is now lost, except for scattered fragments quoted by later authors.Achilles and Patroclus The exact nature of Achilles' relationship with Patroclus has been a subject of dispute in both the classical period and modern times.In the Iliad, it appears to be the model of a deep and loyal friendship.Homer does not suggest that Achilles and his close friend Patroclus had sexual relations.Although there is no direct evidence in the text of the Iliad that Achilles and Patroclus were lovers, this theory was expressed by some later authors.Commentators from classical antiquity to the present have often interpreted the relationship through the lens of their own cultures.In 5th-century BC Athens, the intense bond was often viewed in light of the Greek custom of paiderasteia, which is the relationship between an older male and a younger one, usually a teenager.In Patroclus and Achilles' case, Achilles would have been the younger as Patroclus is usually seen as his elder.In Plato's Symposium, the participants in a dialogue about love assume that Achilles and Patroclus were a couple; Phaedrus argues that Achilles was the younger and more beautiful one so he was the beloved and Patroclus was the lover.However, ancient Greek had no words to distinguish heterosexual and homosexual, and it was assumed that a man could both desire handsome young men and have sex with women.Many pairs of men throughout history have been compared to Achilles and Patroclus to imply a homosexual relationship.Death The death of Achilles, even if considered solely as it occurred in the oldest sources, is a complex one, with many different versions.