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A Background on the Cross
and Crucifix The cross and crucifixion was an instrument and method of capital punishment widely used in ancient times. The victim of this cruel punishment was either impaled on or bound to an upright stake or else fastened by cords or by nails through the hands and feet to an upright post with a crossbar. In either case he was then left to die of exhaustion, thirst or wounds Under the Romans crucifixion was always proceeded by scourging. Often the legs of the victim on the cross would by broken by mallets to accelerate the death, this was considered an act of mercy. With broken legs, the victim would be unable to use the legs to aid in breathing and overall support. The lungs would then typically fill quickly and the victim would asphyxiate. The death of Christ on the cross conferred a new significance on crosses in there various forms which to that point had been associated with pre-Christian religions that were often directly opposed to Christianity (the ankh of Egypt, the swastika of India, and the Tau cross of the Greeks). It was not however till the time of Constantine that crosses were publicly used as the symbol of the Christian religion. Crucifixes would not develop to the form we see today until the middle ages. The 13th century saw the theological importance of the Incarnation and the humanity of Jesus advance greatly which radically transformed the stylized Byzantine crucifixes such as the San Damiano, into crucifixes showing Jesus’ body twisted and bleeding on the cross. These realistic objects became the centerpiece of veneration in churches and cathedrals, and then as now, were and are favored objects of contemplation for both mystics and laity alike. The Renaissance painters and sculptors of the 15th century, transform the image of Jesus yet again. Christ’s arms are outstretched, his head bowed, his eyes closed, but his body is no longer wracked with pain. Instead, he is modeled on the Greek ideal of taut muscularity, displaying serenity rather than agony. The optimism of the Renaissance regarding human nature and the body stands in stark contrast with medieval realism. |
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