Crucifixions and crucifixes have appeared in the arts and popular culture from before the era of the pagan Roman Empire. The crucifixion of Jesus has been depicted in a wide range of religious art since the 4th century CE, much of which has included the appearance of mournful onlookers, the Virgin Mary, angels, Pontius Pilate and even antisemeitc depictions of diecidal Jews. In more modern times, crucifixion has appeared in film and television as well as in fine art, and depictions of other historical crucifixions have appeared as well as the crucifixion of Christ. Modern art and culture have also seen the rise of images of crucifixion being used to make statements unconnected with Christian iconography, or even just used for shock value.

Art

Late Antiquity

The earliest known artistic representations of crucifixion predate the Christian era, including Greek representations of mythical crucifixions inspired by the use of the punishment by the Persians. The

Alexamenos graffito The Alexamenos graffito (also known as the ''graffito blasfemo'', or blasphemous graffito) is a piece of Roman graffito scratched in plaster on the wall of a room near the Palatine Hill in Rome, Italy, which has now been removed and is in the Pa ...

, currently in the museum in the

Palatine Hill The Palatine Hill (; la, Collis Palatium or Mons Palatinus; it, Palatino ), which relative to the seven hills of Rome is the centremost, is one of the most ancient parts of the city and has been called "the first nucleus of the Roman Empire." ...

, Rome, is a Roman graffito from the 2nd century CE which depicts a man worshiping a crucified donkey. This graffito, though apparently meant as an insult, is the earliest known pictorial representation of the crucifixion of Jesus.Augustus John Cuthbert Hare, ''Walks in Rome, Volume 1'', Adamant Media Corporation, 2005
p. 201
/ref> The text scrawled around the image reads Αλεξαμενος ϲεβετε θεον, which approximately translates to "Alexamenos worships God". In the first three centuries of Early Christian art, the crucifixion was rarely depicted. Some engraved gems thought to be 2nd or 3rd century have survived, but the subject does not appear in the art of the Catacombs of Rome, and it is thought that at this period the image was restricted to heretical groups of Christians. The earliest Western images clearly originating in the mainstream of the church are 5th-century, including the scene on the doors of Santa Sabina, Rome.

Constantine I Constantine I ( , ; la, Flavius Valerius Constantinus, ; ; 27 February 22 May 337), also known as Constantine the Great, was Roman emperor from AD 306 to 337, the first one to convert to Christianity. Born in Naissus, Dacia Mediterranea ...

forbade crucifixion as a method of execution, and early church leaders regarded crucifixion with horror, and thus, as an unfit subject for artistic portrayal.Elizabeth A. Dreyer, ''The Cross in Christian Tradition: From Paul to Bonaventure'', Paulist Press, 2001, pp. 21–22. The purported discovery of the True Cross by Constantine's mother,

Helena Helena may refer to: People *Helena (given name), a given name (including a list of people and characters with the name) *Katri Helena (born 1945), Finnish singer *Helena, mother of Constantine I Places Greece * Helena (island) Guyana * ...

, and the development of

Golgotha Calvary ( la, Calvariae or ) or Golgotha ( grc-gre, Γολγοθᾶ, ''Golgothâ'') was a site immediately outside Jerusalem's walls where Jesus was said to have been crucified according to the canonical Gospels. Since at least the early mediev ...

as a site for pilgrimage, together with the dispersal of fragments of the

relic In religion, a relic is an object or article of religious significance from the past. It usually consists of the physical remains of a saint or the personal effects of the saint or venerated person preserved for purposes of veneration as a tangi ...

across the Christian world, led to a change of attitude. It was probably in

Syria Palaestina Syria Palaestina (literally, "Palestinian Syria";Trevor Bryce, 2009, ''The Routledge Handbook of the Peoples and Places of Ancient Western Asia''Roland de Vaux, 1978, ''The Early History of Israel'', Page 2: "After the revolt of Bar Cochba in 135 ...

that the image developed, and many of the earliest depictions are on the Monza ampullae, small metal flasks for holy oil, that were pilgrim's souvenirs from the

Holy Land The Holy Land; Arabic: or is an area roughly located between the Mediterranean Sea and the Eastern Bank of the Jordan River, traditionally synonymous both with the biblical Land of Israel and with the region of Palestine. The term "Holy ...

, as well as 5th-century ivory reliefs from Italy. Prior to the Middle Ages, early Christians preferred to focus on the "triumphant" Christ, rather than a dying one, because the concept of the risen Christ was so central to their faith. The plain cross became depicted, often as a "glorified" symbol, as the crux gemmata, covered with jewels, as many real early medieval processional crosses in goldsmith work were.

Eastern church

Early depictions showed a living Christ, and tended to minimize the appearance of suffering, so as to draw attention to the positive message of resurrection and faith, rather than to the physical realities of execution. In the early history of the church in Ireland, important events were often commemorated by erecting pillars with elaborate crucifixes carved into them, such as where

Saint Patrick Saint Patrick ( la, Patricius; ga, Pádraig ; cy, Padrig) was a fifth-century Romano-British Christian missionary and bishop in Ireland. Known as the "Apostle of Ireland", he is the primary patron saint of Ireland, the other patron saints be ...

, returning as a missionary bishop, saw the place he was held captive in his youth. Early Byzantine depictions such as that in the Rabbula Gospels often show Christ flanked by

Longinus Longinus () is the name given to the unnamed Roman soldier who pierced the side of Jesus with a lance and who in medieval and some modern Christian traditions is described as a convert to Christianity. His name first appeared in the apocryphal G ...

and

Stephaton Stephaton, or Steven, is the name given in medieval Christian traditions to the Roman soldier or bystander, unnamed in the Bible, who offered Jesus a sponge soaked in vinegar wine at the Crucifixion. In later depictions of the Crucifixion, Stepha ...

with their spear and pole with vinegar. According to the gospels, the vinegar was offered just before Christ died, and the lance used just after, so the presence of the two flanking figures symbolizes the "double reality of God and man in Christ". In images from after the end of the Byzantine Iconoclasm, Christ is shown as dead, but his "body is undamaged and there is no expression of pain"; the Eastern church held that Christ's body was invulnerable. The "S"-shaped slumped body type was developed in the 11th century. These images were one of the complaints against Constantinople given by Rome in the

Great Schism of 1054 Great may refer to: Descriptions or measurements * Great, a relative measurement in physical space, see Size * Greatness, being divine, majestic, superior, majestic, or transcendent People * List of people known as "the Great" *Artel Great (born ...

, although the Gero Cross in Cologne is probably nearly a century older.

Western church

The earliest Western images of a dead Christ may be in the Utrecht Psalter, probably before 835. Other early Western examples include the Gero Cross and the reverse of the

Cross of Lothair The Cross of Lothair or Lothair Cross (german: Lotharkreuz) is a ''crux gemmata'' (jewelled cross) processional cross dating from about 1000 AD, though its base dates from the 14th century. It was made in Germany, probably at Cologne. It is an ou ...

, both from the end of the 10th century. The first of these is the earliest near life-size sculpted cross to survive, and in its large scale represents "suffering in its extreme physical consequences", a trend that was to continue in the West. Such figures, especially as roods, large painted or sculpted crucifixes hung high in front of the chancel of churches, became very important in Western art, providing a sharp contrast with Eastern Orthodox traditions, where the subject was never depicted in

monumental sculpture The term monumental sculpture is often used in art history and criticism, but not always consistently. It combines two concepts, one of function, and one of size, and may include an element of a third more subjective concept. It is often used for ...

, and increasingly rarely even in small Byzantine ivories. By contrast, an altar cross, almost always a crucifix, became compulsory in Western churches in the Middle Ages. That it should be a crucifix was first specified in the Roman Missal of 1570 and small wall-mounted crucifixes were increasingly popular in Catholic homes from the

Counter-Reformation The Counter-Reformation (), also called the Catholic Reformation () or the Catholic Revival, was the period of Catholic resurgence that was initiated in response to the Protestant Reformation. It began with the Council of Trent (1545–1563) a ...

, if not before. The image of a crucifix that bled when mocked and struck by Jews also gained popularity during this time. As a broad generalization, the earliest depictions, before about 900, tended to show all three crosses (those of Jesus, the

Good Thief The Penitent Thief, also known as the Good Thief, Wise Thief, Grateful Thief, or Thief on the Cross, is one of two unnamed thieves in Luke's account of the crucifixion of Jesus in the New Testament. The Gospel of Luke describes him asking Jesus ...

and the Bad Thief), but later medieval depictions mostly showed just Jesus and his cross. From the Renaissance either type might be shown. The number of other figures shown depended on the size and medium of the work, but there was a similar trend for early depictions to show a number of figures, giving way in the High Middle Ages to just the Virgin Mary and Saint John the Evangelist, shown standing on either side of the cross, as in the

Stabat Mater The Stabat Mater is a 13th-century Christian hymn to Mary, which portrays her suffering as Jesus Christ's mother during his crucifixion. Its author may be either the Franciscan friar Jacopone da Todi or Pope Innocent III.Sabatier, Paul ''Life o ...

depictions, or sculpted or painted on panels at the end of each arm of a rood cross. The soldiers were less likely to be shown, but others of the party with Mary and John might be. Angels were often shown in the sky, and the Hand of God in some early depictions gave way to a small figure of

God the Father God the Father is a title given to God in Christianity. In mainstream trinitarian Christianity, God the Father is regarded as the first person of the Trinity, followed by the second person, God the Son Jesus Christ, and the third person, God t ...

in the heavens in some later ones, those these were always in the minority. Other elements that might be included were the sun and moon (evoking the darkening of the heavens at the moment of Christ's death), and

Ecclesia and Synagoga Ecclesia and Synagoga, or Ecclesia et Synagoga in Latin, meaning "Church and Synagogue", are a pair of figures personifying the Church and the Jewish synagogue, that is to say Judaism, found in medieval Christian art. They often appear sculpted a ...

. There were also representations of the alleged aggressors, including depictions of Jews mocking, glaring, slapping, and ultimately crucifying Jesus. Although according to the Gospel accounts his clothing was removed from Jesus before his crucifixion, most artists have thought it proper to represent his lower body as draped in some way. In one type of sculpted crucifix, of which the Volto Santo in Lucca is the classic example, Christ continued to wear the long ''collobium'' robe of the Rabbula Gospels. In the Gothic period more elaborate narrative depictions developed, including many extra figures of

Mary Magdalene Mary Magdalene (sometimes called Mary of Magdala, or simply the Magdalene or the Madeleine) was a woman who, according to the four canonical gospels, traveled with Jesus as one of his followers and was a witness to crucifixion of Jesus, his cru ...

, disciples, especially The Three Marys behind the Virgin Mary, soldiers often including an officer on a horse, and angels in the sky. The moment when Longinus the centurion pierces Christ with his spear (the "

Holy Lance The Holy Lance, also known as the Lance of Longinus (named after Saint Longinus), the Spear of Destiny, or the Holy Spear, is the lance that pierced the side of Jesus as he hung on the cross during his crucifixion. Biblical references The l ...

") is often shown, and the blood and water spurting from Christ's side is often caught in a chalice held by an angel. In larger images the other two crosses might return, but most often not. In some works

donor portrait A donor portrait or votive portrait is a portrait in a larger painting or other work showing the person who commissioned and paid for the image, or a member of his, or (much more rarely) her, family. ''Donor portrait'' usually refers to the portr ...

s were included in the scene. Such depictions begin in the late 12th century, and become common where space allows in the 13th century. Related scenes such as the ''

Deposition of Christ The Descent from the Cross ( el, Ἀποκαθήλωσις, ''Apokathelosis''), or Deposition of Christ, is the scene, as depicted in art, from the Gospels' accounts of Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus taking Christ down from the cross after hi ...

'', '' Entombment of Christ'' and ''Nailing of Christ to the Cross'' developed. In the Late Middle Ages, increasingly intense and realistic representations of suffering were shown, paired with increasingly grotesque and malicious depictions of Pontius Pilate and the allegedly murderous Jews, reflecting the development of highly emotional andachtsbilder subjects and devotional trends such as German mysticism; some, like the Throne of Mercy, Man of Sorrows and Pietà, related to the Crucifixion. The same trend affected the depiction of other figures, notably in the "

Swoon of the Virgin The Swoon of the Virgin, in Italian Lo Spasimo della Vergine, or Fainting Virgin Mary was an idea developed in the late Middle Ages, that the Virgin Mary had fainted during the Passion of Christ, most often placed while she watched the Crucifixi ...

", who is very commonly shown fainting in paintings of between 1300 and 1500, though this depiction was attacked by theologians in the 16th century, and became unusual. After typically more tranquil depictions during the Italian Renaissance—though not its Northern equivalent, which produced works such as the Isenheim Altarpiece—there was a return to intense emotionalism in the

Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...

, in works such as Peter Paul Rubens's ''Elevation of the Cross''. The scene always formed part of a cycle of images of the ''

Life of Christ The life of Jesus in the New Testament is primarily outlined in the four canonical gospels, which includes his genealogy and Nativity of Jesus, nativity, Ministry of Jesus, public ministry, Passion of Jesus, passion, prophecy, Resurrection of ...

'' after about 600 (though it is noticeably absent before) and usually in one of the '' Life of the Virgin''; the presence of Saint John made it a common subject for altarpieces in churches dedicated to him. From the late Middle Ages various new contexts for images were devised, from such large scale monuments as the "calvaire" of Brittany and the

Sacri Monti of Piedmont and Lombardy The (plural of , Italian for "Sacred Mountain") of Piedmont and Lombardy are a series of nine calvaries or groups of chapels and other architectural features created in northern Italy during the late sixteenth century and the seventeenth century ...

to the thousands of small wayside shrines found in many parts of Catholic Europe, and the

Stations of the Cross The Stations of the Cross or the Way of the Cross, also known as the Way of Sorrows or the Via Crucis, refers to a series of images depicting Jesus Christ on the day of Crucifixion of Jesus, his crucifixion and accompanying prayers. The station ...

in the majority of Catholic churches. File:Meister der Schule von Nowgorod 002.jpg, Russian Orthodox depiction of crucifixion by a painter of the Novgorod School, 1360 File:Christ-on-the-cross- Fra Carnev.jpg, ''Christ on the Cross'' by

Fra Carnevale Fra Carnevale OP ( 1420–25 – 1484) was an Italian painter of the Quattrocento, active mainly in Urbino. Widely regarded as one of the most enigmatic artists, there are only nine works that can be definitively attributed to Carnevale know ...

, circa 1445–1467 File:Albrecht Altdorfer - Christus am Kreuz mit Maria und Johannes (Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister Kassel).jpg, ''Crucifixion'' by Albrecht Altdorfer, circa 1514–1516, with tiny donor couple among the feet of the main figures File:Cristo crucificado.jpg, '' Cristo crucificado'' by

Diego Velázquez Diego Rodríguez de Silva y Velázquez (baptized June 6, 1599August 6, 1660) was a Spanish painter, the leading artist in the court of King Philip IV of Spain and Portugal, and of the Spanish Golden Age. He was an individualistic artist of th ...

, 1632, showing a

return to realism and emotion in the depiction File:Asseenfromthecross-vi.jpg, ''

Crucifixion, seen from the Cross ''What Our Lord Saw from the Cross'' () is a c. 1890 watercolor painting by the French painter James Tissot. The work is unusual for its portrayal of the Crucifixion of Jesus from the perspective of Jesus on the cross, rather than featuring him a ...

'' by the French painter James Tissot, 1886–1894, shows the view from the perspective of the crucified, and is regarded as an early example of the transition to modern art. File:3556 - Milano, S. Carlo al C.so - Crocifisso sec. XIV - Foto Giovanni Dall'Orto 22-Jun-2007.jpg, 14th-century wood crucifix, Milan File:KongoCrucifix.jpg, Seventeenth-century copper alloy crucifix, Democratic Republic of the Congo File:Russian crucifix.jpg, 18th-century Russian Orthodox brass crucifix File:Crucificado de Luján Pérez, 1793.jpg, ''Crucified'' by José Luján Pérez, 1793, Canary Islands Cathedral, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria File:Berlin Rosenkranz-Basilika Wandbild Kreuzigung.jpg, Mural of the Crucifixion in the

Rosary Basilica (Berlin) The Rosary Basilica (german: Rosenkranz-Basilika) is a Catholic church in Berlin-Steglitz. Designed by Christoph Hehl, professor of medieval architecture, the Neo-Romanesque-style building was completed in 1900. After surviving World War II witho ...

, 1906 File:Crucifix of the Church of Saint Mary of the Angels, Singapore - 20101128-01.jpg, Crucifix at the

Church of St Mary of the Angels The Church of St. Mary of the Angels is a Roman Catholic church (building), church in Singapore completed in 2004. It is located in the Bukit Batok, Bukit Batok Planning Area, within the West Region, Singapore, West Region of Singapore. The chur ...

, Singapore, 2004 File:Innsbruck 2 281.jpg, Crucifixes fashioned out of coral, Ambras Castle,

Innsbruck Innsbruck (; bar, Innschbruck, label=Bavarian language, Austro-Bavarian ) is the capital of Tyrol (state), Tyrol and the List of cities and towns in Austria, fifth-largest city in Austria. On the Inn (river), River Inn, at its junction with the ...

, Austria, date uncertain File:Ceremony of consecration of the Main temple 31.jpg, Crucifix at the Main Cathedral of the Russian Armed Forces, late 2010s

Modern art

Crucifixion has appeared repeatedly as a theme in many forms of

modern art Modern art includes artistic work produced during the period extending roughly from the 1860s to the 1970s, and denotes the styles and philosophies of the art produced during that era. The term is usually associated with art in which the tradi ...

. The surrealist Salvador Dalí painted '' Crucifixion (Corpus Hypercubus)'', representing the cross as a

hypercube In geometry, a hypercube is an ''n''-dimensional analogue of a square () and a cube (). It is a closed, compact, convex figure whose 1- skeleton consists of groups of opposite parallel line segments aligned in each of the space's dimensions, ...

. Fiona Macdonald describes the 1954 painting as showing a classical pose of Christ superimposed on a mathematical representation of the

fourth dimension Fourth dimension may refer to: Science * Time in physics, the continued progress of existence and events * Four-dimensional space, the concept of a fourth spatial dimension * Spacetime, the unification of time and space as a four-dimensional con ...

that is both unseeable and spiritual; Gary Bolyer assesses it as "one of the most beautiful works of the modern era." The sculpture ''Construction (Crucifixion): Homage to Mondrian'', by

Barbara Hepworth Dame Jocelyn Barbara Hepworth (10 January 1903 – 20 May 1975) was an English artist and sculptor. Her work exemplifies Modernism and in particular modern sculpture. Along with artists such as Ben Nicholson and Naum Gabo, Hepworth was a leadi ...

, stands on the grounds of Winchester Cathedral.

Porfirio DiDonna Porfirio DiDonna (1942–1986) was an American artist. Life Porfirio DiDonna was born on 11 April 1942 in Brooklyn, New York, the son of Frank and Mary DiDonna. He had an older brother and sister, Salvatore and Joanne, and a younger sister, Cathe ...

's abstract ''Crucifixion'' is one of a number of religious works he painted in the 1960s, "blending the artist's devotion to the

liturgy Liturgy is the customary public ritual of worship performed by a religious group. ''Liturgy'' can also be used to refer specifically to public worship by Christians. As a religious phenomenon, liturgy represents a communal response to and partic ...

and his commitment to painting". The "Welsh Window", given to the

16th Street Baptist Church The 16th Street Baptist Church is a Baptist church in Birmingham, Alabama, United States. In 1963, the church was bombed by Ku Klux Klan members. The bombing killed four young girls in the midst of the Civil Rights Movement. The church is stil ...

after it was bombed by four

Ku Klux Klan The Ku Klux Klan (), commonly shortened to the KKK or the Klan, is an American white supremacist, right-wing terrorist, and hate group whose primary targets are African Americans, Jews, Latinos, Asian Americans, Native Americans, and ...

smen in 1963, is a work of support and solidarity. The stained glass window depicts a black man, arms outstretched, reminiscent of the crucifixion of Jesus; it was sculpted by John Petts, who also initiated a campaign in Wales to raise money to help rebuild the church. Photographer

Robert Mapplethorpe Robert Michael Mapplethorpe (; November 4, 1946 – March 9, 1989) was an American photographer, best known for his black-and-white photographs. His work featured an array of subjects, including celebrity portraits, male and female nudes, self-p ...

's 1975 self-portrait shows the artist, nude and smiling, posed as if crucified. The 1983 painting ''Crucifixion'', by Nabil Kanso, employs a perspective that places the viewer behind Christ's cross. In 1987 photographer

Andres Serrano Andres Serrano (born August 15, 1950) is an American photographer and artist. His work, often considered transgressive art, includes photos of corpses and uses feces and bodily fluids. His '' Piss Christ'' (1987) is a red-tinged photograph of a ...

created ''

Piss Christ ''Immersion (Piss Christ)'' is a 1987 photograph by the American artist and photographer Andres Serrano. It depicts a small plastic crucifix submerged in a small glass tank of the artist's urine. The piece was a winner of the Southeastern Cen ...

'', a controversial photograph that shows a small plastic crucifix submerged in a glass of the artist's urine, in which Serrano intended to depict sympathetically the abuse of Jesus by his executioners. In the 1990s,

Marcus Reichert Marcus Reichert (19 June 1948 - 19 January 2022) was an American painter, poet, author, photographer, and film writer/director. He was given his first exhibition of paintings at the age of twenty-one at the Gotham Book Mart, Gotham Book Mart and ...

painted a series of crucifixions, though he did not identify the figure as Christ, but as a representation of human suffering. Other artists have used crucifixion imagery as a form of protest. In 1974,

Chris Burden Christopher Lee Burden (April 11, 1946 – May 10, 2015) was an American artist working in performance, sculpture and installation art. Burden became known in the 1970s for his performance art works, including ''Shoot'' (1971), where he arranged ...

had himself crucified to a Volkswagen in ''

Trans-Fixed ''Trans-Fixed'' was a 1974 performance by Chris Burden in which he was crucified onto a Volkswagen Beetle. Description On April 23, 1974, performance artist Chris Burden was crucified shirtless onto the back of a pale blue Volkswagen Beetle ...

''. Robert Cenedella painted a crucified Santa Claus as a protest against Christmas commercialization, displayed in the window of New York's Art Students League in December 1997. In August 2000, performance artist Sebastian Horsley had himself crucified without the use of any

analgesic An analgesic drug, also called simply an analgesic (American English), analgaesic (British English), pain reliever, or painkiller, is any member of the group of drugs used to achieve relief from pain (that is, analgesia or pain management). It ...

s. File:Porfirio DiDonna Crucifixion 1964.jpg, ''Crucifixion'' by

, 1964, oil on linen, 24 x 20 inches File:Construction Crucifixion Homage to Mondrian crop.jpg, ''Construction (Crucifixion): Homage to Mondrian'', 1966, by

File:Burden-Transfixed.jpg,

's 1974 performance piece ''Trans-Fixed'', in which he is crucified on a Volkswagen File:Marcus Reichert painting Crucifixion VII 1991.jpg,

, Crucifixion VII (1991), oil and charcoal on linen with newsprint collage, 74" x 62" File:Gabriel Max 1866 St Julia img02.jpg,

Gabriel von Max Gabriel Cornelius Ritter von Max (23 August 1840 – 24 November 1915) was a Prague-born Austrian painter. Biography He was born Gabriel Cornelius Max, the son of the sculptor Josef Max and Anna Schumann. He studied between 1855 and 1858 at ...

's 1866 painting ''Martyress'' depicts a crucified young woman and a young man laying flowers at her feet – a scene not corresponding to any of the female martyrs attested in formal Christian

hagiography A hagiography (; ) is a biography of a saint or an ecclesiastical leader, as well as, by extension, an adulatory and idealized biography of a founder, saint, monk, nun or icon in any of the world's religions. Early Christian hagiographies migh ...

Popular art

Crucifixion in popular art, as with modern art, is sometimes used for its shock value. For example, a World War I Liberty bond poster by Fernando Amorsolo depicts a German soldier nailing an American soldier, his arms outspread, to the trunk of a tree. Crucifixion imagery is also used to make points in political cartoons. An image of a skinhead being crucified is a popular symbol among the skinhead subculture, and it is used to convey a sense of societal alienation or persecution against the subculture. File:Your Liberty Bond will help stop this Crisco restoration and colours.jpg, Liberty Bond poster by Fernando Amorsolo File:Sergey Solomko 025.JPG, Postcard protesting German occupation of Poland.

Sergey Solomko Sergey Sergeyevich Solomko (russian: Сергей Сергеевич Соломко; 22 August 1867 in Saint Petersburg, Russian Empire – 2 February 1928 in Sainte-Geneviève-des-Bois) was a Russian Imperial painter, watercolorist, illustrator ...

, circa 1915–17 File:Crucified Skinhead.svg, A crucified skinhead, an identifying symbol of the skinhead subculture

Graphic novels

Crucifixion figures prominently in graphic novels from many cultures throughout the world. In Western comic books, characters in cruciform are seen more often than actual crucifixions. For example, ''

Animal Man Animal Man (Bernhard "Buddy" Baker) is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. As a result of being in proximity to an exploding extraterrestrial spaceship, Buddy Baker acquires the ability to temporarily "borrow" t ...

'''s fifth issue earned an

Eisner Award The Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, commonly shortened to the Eisner Awards, are prizes given for creative achievement in American comic books, sometimes referred to as the comics industry's equivalent of the Academy Awards. They are named in ...

nomination in 1989 for its "The Coyote Gospel", the story of Crafty, a thinly-disguised

Wile E. Coyote Wile E. Coyote and the Road Runner are a duo of cartoon characters from the ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merrie Melodies'' series of animated cartoons, first appearing in 1949 in the theatrical cartoon short ''Fast and Furry-ous''. In each episode, t ...

(of the Road Runner cartoons) and the depiction at the culmination of the issue of his dead body in cruciform.

Superman Superman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, and debuted in the comic book ''Action Comics'' #1 (cover-dated June 1938 and publi ...

, often seen as a Christ figure, has also been crucified, as well as being shown in cruciform. Crucifixions and crucifixes have appeared repeatedly in Japanese

manga Manga (Japanese: 漫画 ) are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long prehistory in earlier Japanese art. The term ''manga'' is u ...

and anime. In manga iconography, crucifixes serve two purposes: as death symbols, and as symbols of justice. Scholars such as Michael Broderick and

Susan J. Napier Susan Jolliffe Napier (born October 11, 1955) is a Professor of the Japanese Program at Tufts University. She was formerly the Mitsubishi Professor of Japanese Literature and Culture at the University of Texas at Austin. She also worked as a visi ...

argue that Japanese readers associate crucifixion imagery with apocalyptic themes, and trace this symbolism to Japanese secular views of the bombings of

Hiroshima is the capital of Hiroshima Prefecture in Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 1,199,391. The gross domestic product (GDP) in Greater Hiroshima, Hiroshima Urban Employment Area, was US$61.3 billion as of 2010. Kazumi Matsui h ...

and Nagasaki, rather than to religious faith. Producers of anime generally deny any religious motivation for depiction of crucifixion. Concern that Westerners may find these portrayals of crucifixion offensive has led some distributors and localization studios to remove crucifixion imagery from manga such as ''Fullmetal Alchemist'' and anime such as ''

Sailor Moon is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Naoko Takeuchi. It was originally serialized in Kodansha's ''shōjo'' manga magazine ''Nakayoshi'' from 1991 to 1997; the 52 individual chapters were published in 18 volumes. The seri ...

''.

Passion plays

Passion plays are dramatic presentations of the trial and crucifixion of Jesus. They originated as expressions of devotion in the Middle Ages. In modern times, critics have said that some performances are

antisemitic Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism. Antis ...

, portraying Jews as Jesus's murderous and hateful antagonist.Sennott, Charles M
"In Poland, new 'Passion' plays on old hatreds"
'' The Boston Globe'', April 10, 2004.

Film and television

Film

Numerous movies have been produced which depict the crucifixion of Jesus. Some of these movies depict the crucifixion in its traditional sectarian form, while others intend to show a more historically accurate account. For example, ''

Ben-Hur Ben-Hur or Ben Hur may refer to: Fiction *'' Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ'', an 1880 novel by American general and author Lew Wallace ** ''Ben-Hur'' (play), a play that debuted on Broadway in 1899 ** ''Ben Hur'' (1907 film), a one-reel silent ...

'' (1959), was probably the first movie to depict the nails being driven through Jesus' wrists, rather than his palms. Mel Gibson's controversial '' The Passion of the Christ'' (2004) depicted an extreme level of violence, but showed the nails being driven into Jesus' palms, as is traditional, with ropes supporting the wrists. Although crucifixion imagery is common, few films depict actual crucifixion outside of a Christian context. '' Spartacus'' (1960) depicts the mass crucifixions of rebellious slaves along the Appian Way after the Third Servile War. The character Big Bob is crucified by cannibals in Wes Craven's horror exploitation film ''

The Hills Have Eyes ''The Hills Have Eyes'' is an American horror franchise that consists of four horror films, as well as a graphic novel and merchandise. The first film was released in 1977, '' The Hills Have Eyes''; the series was rebooted in a 2006 remake. T ...

'' (1977) as well as its 2006 remake. '' Conan the Barbarian'' (1982) depicts the protagonist being crucified on the Tree of Woe. The 1979 British comedy film '' Monty Python's Life of Brian'' ends with a comical sequence in which several of the cast, including Brian, are crucified by the Romans. The film ends with them all singing the song "

Always Look on the Bright Side of Life "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life" is a comedy song written by Monty Python member Eric Idle that was first featured in the Python film '' Life of Brian'' and has gone on to become a common singalong at public events such as football matc ...

". In this sequence, the characters are not nailed to the crosses, but tied at the wrists to the crossbar, and are standing on smaller crosspieces at foot level. In the 2010 film ''Legion'', one of the diner patrons is found crucified upside down and covered with huge boils.

Television

Simulated crucifixions have been performed in professional wrestling. On the December 7, 1998, edition of ''

WWF Monday Night Raw ''WWE Raw'', also known as ''Monday Night Raw'' or simply ''Raw'', is an American professional wrestling television program produced by WWE that currently airs live every Monday at 8 p.m. ET on the USA Network in the United States. The show fe ...

'', professional wrestling character The Undertaker crucified Steve Austin. On October 26, 1996, in Extreme Championship Wrestling,

Raven A raven is any of several larger-bodied bird species of the genus ''Corvus''. These species do not form a single taxonomic group within the genus. There is no consistent distinction between "crows" and "ravens", common names which are assigned t ...

, during a feud with

The Sandman The Sandman is a mythical character in European folklore who puts people to sleep and encourages and inspires beautiful dreams by sprinkling magical sand onto their eyes. Representation in traditional folklore The Sandman is a traditional charact ...

, instructed his Raven's Nest to crucify Sandman. Other television performers have used crucifixion to make a point. The Australian

comedian A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing Amusement is the state of experiencing humorous and entertaining events or situations while the person or a ...

John Safran had himself crucified in the Philippines as part of a

Good Friday Good Friday is a Christian holiday commemorating the crucifixion of Jesus and his death at Calvary. It is observed during Holy Week as part of the Paschal Triduum. It is also known as Holy Friday, Great Friday, Great and Holy Friday (also Hol ...

crucifixion ritual for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation show, ''

John Safran's Race Relations ''John Safran's Race Relations'' is an Australian comedy documentary television series by John Safran broadcast on ABC1 in 2009. The eight-part series is about cross-cultural, interracial and interfaith love. His globetrotting takes him to Pale ...

'' (2009). Singer Robbie Williams performed a stunt on an April 2006 Easter Sunday show shown on the UK television channel Channel 4, in which he was affixed to a cross and pierced with needles. The

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...

television series '' Rome'' (2005–2007) contained several depictions of crucifixion, as it was a common torture method during the historical period the show takes place in. In the 2010 ''

Starz Starz (stylized as STARZ since 2016; pronounced "stars") is an American premium cable and satellite television network owned by Lions Gate Entertainment, and is the flagship property of parent subsidiary Starz Inc. Programming on Starz consist ...

'' television series '' Spartacus: Blood and Sand'', Segovax, a slave recruit to the gladiatorial ludus of Lentulus Batiatus, attempts to assassinate Spartacus in the ludus washrooms and is crucified for doing so "after being parted from his cock". Crucifixion has been depicted in the television series '' Xena: Warrior Princess'' (1995–2001), where its depiction has been cited in feminist studies as illustrating violent and misogynist tendencies within a messianic paradigm. In the History Channel series "Vikings", the character Æthelstan, after being captured by the Saxons and named an apostate, is shown wearing a crown of thorns and being nailed to a cross. After the cross is raised he is taken down at the order of King Ecbert. The Japanese science fiction series

Neon Genesis Evangelion , also known simply as ''Evangelion'' or ''Eva'', is a Japanese mecha anime television series produced by Gainax and animated by Tatsunoko, directed by Hideaki Anno and broadcast on TV Tokyo from October 1995 to March 1996. ''Evangelion' ...

features crucifixion as a recurring motif. During the Pilot episode of Smallville,

Clark Kent Superman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, and debuted in the comic book ''Action Comics'' #1 (cover-dated June 1938 and publish ...

was tied up (only his underwear and a red S painted on his chest) on a scarecrow pole, resembling very much like a cross, and subdued with a

Kryptonite Kryptonite is a fictional material that appears primarily in Superman stories published by DC Comics. In its best-known form, it is a green, crystalline material originating from Superman's home world of Krypton that emits a unique, poisonous r ...

necklace.

Video games

In '' Danganronpa Another Episode: Ultra Despair Girls'', one of the women gets ultimately crucified on a cross with screws as Monokuma plays with the marionette strings.

Music

Classical music

Weyden Christ on the Cross with Mary and St John

Famous depictions of crucifixion in classical music include the ''

St John Passion The ''Passio secundum Joannem'' or ''St John Passion'' (german: Johannes-Passion, link=no), BWV 245, is a Passion or oratorio by Johann Sebastian Bach, the older of the surviving Passions by Bach. It was written during his first year as direc ...

'' and ''

St Matthew Passion The ''St Matthew Passion'' (german: Matthäus-Passion, links=-no), BWV 244, is a '' Passion'', a sacred oratorio written by Johann Sebastian Bach in 1727 for solo voices, double choir and double orchestra, with libretto by Picander. It sets ...

'' by Johann Sebastian Bach, and

Giovanni Battista Pergolesi Giovanni Battista Draghi (; 4 January 1710 – 16 or 17 March 1736), often referred to as Giovanni Battista Pergolesi (), was an Italian Baroque composer, violinist, and organist. His best-known works include his Stabat Mater and the opera ''L ...

's setting of ''

''. Notable recent settings include the ''St. Luke Passion'' (1965) by Polish composer Krzysztof Penderecki and the ''St. John Passion'' (1982) by Estonian composer

Arvo Pärt Arvo Pärt (; born 11 September 1935) is an Estonian composer of contemporary classical music. Since the late 1970s, Pärt has worked in a minimalist style that employs tintinnabuli, a compositional technique he invented. Pärt's music is in pa ...

. The 2000 work, '' La Pasión según San Marcos'' (St. Mark Passion) by Argentinian Jewish composer Osvaldo Golijov, was named one of the top classical compositions of the decade for its fusion of traditional passion motifs with Afro-Cuban, tango, Capoeira, and Kaddish themes. Crucifixion has figured prominently in Easter

cantatas A cantata (; ; literally "sung", past participle feminine singular of the Italian verb ''cantare'', "to sing") is a vocal composition with an instrumental accompaniment, typically in several movements, often involving a choir. The meaning of t ...

, oratorios, and

requiem A Requiem or Requiem Mass, also known as Mass for the dead ( la, Missa pro defunctis) or Mass of the dead ( la, Missa defunctorum), is a Mass of the Catholic Church offered for the repose of the soul or souls of one or more deceased persons, ...

s. The third section of a full mass, the ''Credo'', contains the following passage at its climax: ''"Crucifixus etiam pro nobis sub Pontio Pilato, passus et sepultus est,"'' which means "And was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate; he suffered and was buried." This passage was sometimes set to music separately as a ''Crucifixus'', the most famous example being that of

Antonio Lotti Antonio Lotti (5 January 1667 – 5 January 1740) was an Italian composer of the Baroque era. Biography Lotti was born in Venice, although his father Matteo was ''Kapellmeister'' at Hanover at the time. Oral tradition says that in 1682, Lotti be ...

for eight voices. The seven utterances of Jesus while on the Cross, gathered from the four gospels, have inspired many musical compositions, from Heinrich Schütz in 1645 to Ruth Zechlin in 1996, with the best known being

Joseph Haydn Franz Joseph Haydn ( , ; 31 March 173231 May 1809) was an Austrian composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. He was instrumental in the development of chamber music such as the string quartet and piano trio. His contributions ...

's ' composition'', written in 1787. Depictions of crucifixion outside the Christian context are rare. One of the few examples is in Ernest Reyer's opera '' Salammbô'' (1890).

Popular music

The 1970 rock opera

Jesus Christ Superstar ''Jesus Christ Superstar'' is a sung-through rock opera with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Tim Rice. Loosely based on the Gospels' accounts of the Passion, the work interprets the psychology of Jesus and other characters, with ...

Tim Rice Sir Timothy Miles Bindon Rice (born 10 November 1944) is an English lyricist and author. He is best known for his collaborations with Andrew Lloyd Webber, with whom he wrote, among other shows, ''Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat'', ' ...

and

Andrew Lloyd Webber Andrew Lloyd Webber, Baron Lloyd-Webber (born 22 March 1948), is an English composer and impresario of musical theatre. Several of his musicals have run for more than a decade both in the West End and on Broadway. He has composed 21 musicals, ...

ends with Jesus' crucifixion. The cover art of Tupac Shakur's album The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory features an image of Tupac being crucified on a cross. He stated that the image was not a mockery of Christ; rather, it showed how he was being "crucified" by the media. Multiple

Marilyn Manson Brian Hugh Warner (born January 5, 1969), known professionally as Marilyn Manson, is an American rock musician. He came to prominence as the lead singer of the band which shares his name, of which he remains the only constant member since it ...

videos such as "I Don't Like The Drugs But The Drugs Like Me" and "Coma White" feature crucifixion imagery, often oddly staged in surreal modern or near modern-day settings. The Norwegian black metal band Gorgoroth had several people on stage affixed to crosses to give the appearance of crucifixion at a now infamous concert in Kraków, and repeated this act in the music video for "Carving a Giant." In 2006, singer

Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone (; ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Widely dubbed the " Queen of Pop", Madonna has been noted for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, songwriting, a ...

opened a concert held near Vatican City with a mock crucifixion, complete with a crown of thorns.

Novels

Sue Monk Kidd Sue Monk Kidd (born August 12, 1948) is an American writer from Sylvester, Georgia best known for her novels '' The Secret Life of Bees'' and ''The Invention of Wings''. Early life and education Kidd was born in Sylvester, Georgia, and attended ...

's 2020 novel ''The Book of Longings'', tells the fictional story of Ana, an educated woman who marries Jesus.

D. G. Martin David Grier Martin Jr. (born May 24, 1940) is an American retired lawyer, politician, and university administrator. Martin was a candidate for the United States House of Representatives in 1984 and 1986, losing to Alex McMillan. Martin later ser ...

says the novel "reconstructs the crucifixion experience in a way more horrible and poignant than any of the four Gospels."

Notes

References

* Schiller, Gertrud, ''Iconography of Christian Art, Vol. II'',1972 (English translation from German), Lund Humphries, London,

External links

*
Age of spirituality : late antique and early Christian art, third to seventh century
' from The Metropolitan Museum of Art {{Authority control Visual arts by subject Death in art Crucifixion Christian art about death Christian iconography

Art