Ancient Crucifixion Victim from Venice Discovered

[Erik Nelson]

How Jesus died: ancient crucifixion victim offers new clues

 

[JackRT]

How Jesus died: ancient crucifixion victim offers new clues

Pontius Pilate was the cruelest proconsul ever sent by Rome to Judea. He crucified hundreds perhaps thousands of innocent Jews for the most minor infractions. King Herod Agrippa I wrote a letter to the Emperor Caligula about Pilate’s "acts of violence…. provocations, corruption… continual murder of persons untried and uncondemned, and his never ending, endless and unbelievable cruelties." Philo wrote of Pilate’s "violence, robberies… continuous executions without even the form of a trial, endless and intolerable cruelties." Josephus, in Antiquities, shows that Pilate’s excessive murders and brutality were so severe that they eventually got him recalled to Rome in the year AD 36.

The Romans carried out an extremely harsh "justice". Crucifixion was by law reserved for only rebellious slaves and political agitators of the lowest social classes. Only the Romans were allowed this form of execution but the Jews did not lose their right to execute by stoning for blasphemy until AD 39. Pilate was severely criticized for his frequent excesses, including crucifixions without trial and extreme brutality, and was in fact actually removed from office for these excesses. Crucifixion was designed to be as painful and as humiliating as possible both for the victim himself and any onlookers. The victim was naked and onlookers were kept well away from the site. No one was permitted to provide any sort of comfort to the victim. Depending on the actual form of crucifixion and on the physical condition of the victim, death could take as long as a week. Burial was seldom permitted --- only two are known to history. The body was usually discarded into a shallow grave to be consumed by the carrion birds and wild dogs. Tens of thousands perhaps hundreds of thousands were executed in this way. There were several mass crucifixions --- the 6000 survivors of the slave rebellion led by Spartacus in 71 BC, the 2000 survivors of the AD 6 rebellion in Galilee, and at the siege of Jerusalem in AD 70 captured escapees were crucified as many as 200 or more a day.

 

[Clint Edwards]

Pontius Pilate was the cruelest proconsul ever sent by Rome to Judea. He crucified hundreds perhaps thousands of innocent Jews for the most minor infractions. King Herod Agrippa I wrote a letter to the Emperor Caligula about Pilate’s "acts of violence…. provocations, corruption… continual murder of persons untried and uncondemned, and his never ending, endless and unbelievable cruelties." Philo wrote of Pilate’s "violence, robberies… continuous executions without even the form of a trial, endless and intolerable cruelties." Josephus, in Antiquities, shows that Pilate’s excessive murders and brutality were so severe that they eventually got him recalled to Rome in the year AD 36.

The Romans carried out an extremely harsh "justice". Crucifixion was by law reserved for only rebellious slaves and political agitators of the lowest social classes. Only the Romans were allowed this form of execution but the Jews did not lose their right to execute by stoning for blasphemy until AD 39. Pilate was severely criticized for his frequent excesses, including crucifixions without trial and extreme brutality, and was in fact actually removed from office for these excesses. Crucifixion was designed to be as painful and as humiliating as possible both for the victim himself and any onlookers. The victim was naked and onlookers were kept well away from the site. No one was permitted to provide any sort of comfort to the victim. Depending on the actual form of crucifixion and on the physical condition of the victim, death could take as long as a week. Burial was seldom permitted --- only two are known to history. The body was usually discarded into a shallow grave to be consumed by the carrion birds and wild dogs. Tens of thousands perhaps hundreds of thousands were executed in this way. There were several mass crucifixions --- the 6000 survivors of the slave rebellion led by Spartacus in 71 BC, the 2000 survivors of the AD 6 rebellion in Galilee, and at the siege of Jerusalem in AD 70 captured escapees were crucified as many as 200 or more a day.

Yes, it was a terror weapon. Brutality and hideous retribution is how the Romans kept the peace in conquered nations. Nero crucified hundreds along a road to Rome he was to use at night. They were doused with pitch and when his procession was near, they were lit afire for lighting along the way. If you decided to go against Rome, they wanted you to think long and hard about what would happen if you failed.

 

[harko]

Yes, it was a terror weapon. Brutality and hideous retribution is how the Romans kept the peace in conquered nations. Nero crucified hundreds along a road to Rome he was to use at night. They were doused with pitch and when his procession was near, they were lit afire for lighting along the way. If you decided to go against Rome, they wanted you to think long and hard about what would happen if you failed.

Wow!! Just wow!