Crucifixion of Jesus

==Details==
{{Main|Passion (Christianity)}}

===Chronology===
{{Main|Chronology of Jesus}}
There is no consensus regarding the exact date of the crucifixion of Jesus, although it is generally agreed by biblical scholars that it was on a [[Good Friday|Friday]] on or near [[Passover]] ([[Nisan]] 14), during the governorship of Pontius Pilate (who ruled AD 26–36).<ref name="Lémonon 1981 29–32">{{cite book |last=Lémonon |first=J.P. |title=Pilate et le gouvernement de la Judée: textes et monuments, Études bibliques |publisher=Gabalda |location=Paris |year=1981 |pages=29–32}}</ref> Various approaches have been used to estimate the year of the crucifixion, including the canonical Gospels, the chronology of the life of Paul, as well as different [[astronomy|astronomical]] models. Scholars have provided estimates in the range 30–33 AD,<ref name=ChronosPaul >[[Paul L. Maier]] "The Date of the Nativity and Chronology of Jesus" in ''Chronos, kairos, Christos: nativity and chronological studies'' by Jerry Vardaman, Edwin M. Yamauchi 1989 {{ISBN|0-931464-50-1}} pp. 113–129</ref><ref name=Kostenberger140 >''The Cradle, the Cross, and the Crown: An Introduction to the New Testament'' by [[Andreas J. Köstenberger]], L. Scott Kellum 2009 {{ISBN|978-0-8054-4365-3}} p. 114</ref><ref name=Barnett19 >''Jesus & the Rise of Early Christianity: A History of New Testament Times'' by Paul Barnett 2002 {{ISBN|0-8308-2699-8}} pp. 19–21</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Davies |first1=W. D. |last2=Sanders |first2=E.P. |editor1-last=Horbury |editor1-first=William |editor2-last=Davies |editor2-first=W.D. |editor3-last=Sturdy |editor3-first=John |title=The Cambridge History of Judaism. Volume 3: The Early Roman period |date=2008 |publisher=Cambridge Univiversity Press |isbn=9780521243773 |page=621 |chapter=20. Jesus: From the Jewish Point of View |quote=The approximate period of his death (c. CE 30, plus or minus one or two years) is confirmed by the requirements of the chronology of Paul.}}</ref> with [[Rainer Riesner]] stating that "the fourteenth of Nisan (7 April) of the year 30 AD is, apparently in the opinion of the majority of contemporary scholars as well, far and away the most likely date of the crucifixion of Jesus."<ref name="Rainer Riesner 1998 page 58">Rainer Riesner, ''Paul's Early Period: Chronology, Mission Strategy, Theology'' (Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing, 1998), p. 58.</ref>  Another preferred date among scholars is Friday, 3 April 33 AD.<ref name="Maier, P.L. 1968 3–13">{{cite journal |author=Maier, P.L. |year=1968 |title=Sejanus, Pilate, and the Date of the Crucifixion |journal= Church History |volume=37 |issue=1 |pages=3–13 |doi=10.2307/3163182 |jstor=3163182|s2cid=162410612 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author=Fotheringham, J.K. |year=1934 |title=The evidence of astronomy and technical chronology for the date of the crucifixion |journal= Journal of Theological Studies |volume=35 |issue=138 |pages=146–162|doi=10.1093/jts/os-XXXV.138.146 }}</ref> 

The consensus of scholarship is that the New Testament accounts represent a crucifixion occurring on a Friday, but a Thursday or Wednesday crucifixion have also been proposed.<ref name=Nis167 /><ref name=Kellum142 >''The Cradle, the Cross, and the Crown: An Introduction to the New Testament'' by Andreas J. Köstenberger, L. Scott Kellum 2009 {{ISBN|978-0-8054-4365-3}} pp. 142–143</ref> Some scholars explain a Thursday crucifixion based on a "double sabbath" caused by an extra Passover sabbath falling on Thursday dusk to Friday afternoon, ahead of the normal weekly Sabbath.<ref name=Nis167 >{{Cite web|url=https://www.google.com/search?q=Niswonger+%22which+meant+Friday%22|title=Niswonger "which meant Friday" – Google Search|website=www.google.com|access-date=April 7, 2023|archive-date=April 7, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220407220305/https://www.google.com/search?q=Niswonger+%22which+meant+Friday%22|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>Cyclopaedia of Biblical, theological, and ecclesiastical literature: Volume 7 John McClintock, James Strong – 1894 "...&nbsp;he lay in the grave on the 15th (which was a 'high day' or double Sabbath, because the weekly Sabbath coincided&nbsp;..."</ref> Some have argued that Jesus was crucified on Wednesday, not Friday, on the grounds of the mention of "three days and three nights" in {{bibleref2||Matthew|12:40}} before his resurrection, celebrated on Sunday. Others have countered by saying that this ignores the Jewish idiom by which a "day and night" may refer to any part of a 24-hour period, that the expression in Matthew is idiomatic, not a statement that Jesus was 72 hours in the tomb, and that the many references to a resurrection on the third day do not require three literal nights.<ref name=Nis167 /><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.google.ie/search?tbm=bks&q=Blomberg+%22Wednesday+crucifixion%22&btnG=|title=Blomberg "Wednesday crucifixion" – Google Search|website=www.google.ie|access-date=April 7, 2023|archive-date=April 6, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220406140311/http://www.google.ie/search?tbm=bks&q=Blomberg%20%22Wednesday%20crucifixion%22&btnG=|url-status=live}}</ref>

In [[s:Bible (American Standard)/Mark#15:25|Mark 15:25]] crucifixion takes place at the third hour (9 [[ante meridiem|a.m.]]) and  Jesus's death at the ninth hour (3 p.m.).<ref name=Harrington442>''The Gospel of Mark, Volume 2'' by John R. Donahue, Daniel J. Harrington 2002 {{ISBN|0-8146-5965-9}} p. 442</ref> In [[s:Bible (American Standard)/John#19:14|John 19:14]] Jesus is still before Pilate at the sixth hour.<ref name= KEasley323 /> Scholars have presented a number of arguments to deal with the issue, some suggesting a reconciliation, e.g., based on the use of [[Roman timekeeping]] in John, since Roman timekeeping began at midnight and this would mean being before Pilate at the 6th hour was 6 a.m., yet others have rejected the arguments.<ref name= KEasley323 /><ref name=RBrown959 >''Death of the Messiah, Volume 2'' by Raymond E. Brown 1999 {{ISBN|0-385-49449-1}} pp. 959–960</ref><ref name=Colin188 >[[Colin Humphreys]], ''The Mystery of the Last Supper'' Cambridge University Press 2011 {{ISBN|978-0-521-73200-0}}, pp. 188–190</ref> Several scholars have argued that the modern precision of marking the time of day should not be read back into the gospel accounts, written at a time when no standardization of timepieces, or exact recording of hours and minutes was available, and time was often approximated to the closest three-hour period.<ref name= KEasley323 >Steven L. Cox, Kendell H Easley, 2007 Harmony of the Gospels {{ISBN|0-8054-9444-8}} pp. 323–323</ref><ref>''New Testament History'' by Richard L. Niswonger 1992 {{ISBN|0-310-31201-9}} pp. 173–174</ref><ref name="Kellum538">''The Cradle, the Cross, and the Crown: An Introduction to the New Testament'' by Andreas J. Köstenberger, L. Scott Kellum 2009 {{ISBN|978-0-8054-4365-3}} p. 538</ref>

===Path===
{{Main|Christ carrying the Cross|Via Dolorosa}}
[[File:5 Andrea di Bartolo. Way to Calvary. c. 1400, Thissen-Bornhemisza coll. Madrid.jpg|thumb|[[Andrea di Bartolo]], ''Way to Calvary'', c. 1400. The cluster of halos at the left are the [[Virgin Mary]] in front, with the [[Three Marys]].]]
The three [[Synoptic Gospels]] refer to a man called [[Simon of Cyrene]] whom the Roman soldiers order to carry the cross after Jesus initially carries it but then collapses,<ref>{{Bibleref2|Matthew|27:32}}, {{Bibleref2|Mark|15:21}}, {{Bibleref2|Luke|23:26}}</ref> while the Gospel of John just says that Jesus "bears" his own cross.<ref>{{bibleverse|Jn.|19:17}}</ref> <!---John uses "bastazō" with a figurative meaning of ''enduring'' or ''sustaining''.<ref>{{StrongGreek|941}}</ref> By contrast, the first two accounts use "airō" which literally means to ''raise'', ''take up'', or ''lift'',<ref>{{StrongGreek|142}}</ref> and Luke uses "pherō̄" which literally means to ''bear'', ''carry'', or ''bring forth''.<ref>{{StrongGreek|5342}}</ref> -->

Luke's gospel also describes an interaction between Jesus and the women among the crowd of mourners following him, quoting Jesus as saying "Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me, but weep for yourselves and for your children. For behold, the days are coming when they will say, 'Blessed are the barren and the wombs that never bore and the breasts that never nursed!' Then they will begin to say to the mountains, 'Fall on us,' and to the hills, 'Cover us.' For if they do these things when the wood is green, what will happen when it is dry?"<ref>{{bibleverse|Lk.|23:28–31}}</ref>

The [[Gospel of Luke]] has Jesus address these women as "daughters of Jerusalem", thus distinguishing them from the women whom the same gospel describes as "the women who had followed him from Galilee" and who were present at his crucifixion.<ref>{{bibleverse||Luke|23:46|ESV}} and {{bibleverse-nb||Luke|23:55}}</ref>

Traditionally, the path that Jesus took is called [[Via Dolorosa]] ([[Latin language|Latin]] for "Way of Grief" or "Way of Suffering") and is a street in the [[Old City of Jerusalem]]. It is marked by nine of the fourteen [[Stations of the Cross]]. It passes the [[Ecce Homo (church)|Ecce Homo Church]] and the last five stations are inside the [[Church of the Holy Sepulchre]].

There is no reference to a woman named [[Saint Veronica|Veronica]]<ref>Lavinia Cohn-Sherbok, ''Who's who in Christianity'', (Routledge 1998), p. 303.</ref> in the Gospels, but sources such as ''[[Acta Sanctorum]]'' describe her as a pious woman of [[Jerusalem]] who, moved with pity as [[Jesus]] carried his cross to [[Golgotha]], gave him her veil that he might wipe his forehead.<ref>''[[Notes and Queries]]'', Volume July 6 – December 1852, London, page 252</ref><ref>The Archaeological journal (UK), Volume 7, 1850 p. 413</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/15362a.htm|title=CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: St. Veronica|website=www.newadvent.org|access-date=April 2, 2022|archive-date=April 3, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220403180405/https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/15362a.htm|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>Alban Butler, 2000 ''Lives of the Saints'' {{ISBN|0-86012-256-5}} p. 84</ref>

===Location===
[[File:Golgotha cross-section.svg|thumb|300px|A diagram of the [[Church of the Holy Sepulchre]] and the historical site]]
The precise location of the crucifixion remains a matter of conjecture, but the biblical accounts indicate that it was outside the city walls of Jerusalem,<ref>{{bibleverse|Jn.|19:20}}, {{bibleverse|Heb.|13:12}}</ref> accessible to passers-by<ref>{{bibleverse|Mt.|27:39}}, {{bibleverse|Mk.|15:21,29–30}}</ref> and observable from some distance away.<ref>{{bibleverse|Mk.|15:40}}</ref> [[Eusebius of Caesarea|Eusebius]] identified its location only as being north of [[Mount Zion]],<ref>{{cite book |title=Onomasticon (Concerning the Place Names in Sacred Scripture) |author=Eusebius of Caesarea |author-link=Eusebius of Caesarea |url=http://www.tertullian.org/fathers/eusebius_onomasticon_02_trans.htm#G_THE_GOSPELS |access-date=April 10, 2008 |archive-date=July 17, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190717203828/http://www.tertullian.org/fathers/eusebius_onomasticon_02_trans.htm#G_THE_GOSPELS |url-status=live }}</ref> which is consistent with the two most popularly suggested sites of modern times.

[[Calvary]] as an English name for the place is derived from the Latin word for skull ({{lang|la|calvaria}}), which is used in the [[Vulgate]] translation of "place of a skull", the explanation given in all four Gospels of the Aramaic word ''Gûlgaltâ'' (transliterated into the [[Greek language|Greek]] as {{lang|el|Γολγοθᾶ}} (Golgotha)), which was the name of the place where Jesus was crucified.<ref>{{bibleverse||Matthew|27:33}}; {{bibleverse||Mark|15:22}}; {{bibleverse||Luke|23:33}}; {{bibleverse||John|19:17}}</ref> The text does not indicate why it was so designated, but several theories have been put forward. One is that as a place of public execution, Calvary may have been strewn with the skulls of abandoned victims (which would be contrary to Jewish burial traditions, but not Roman). Another is that Calvary is named after a nearby cemetery (which is consistent with both of the proposed modern sites). A third is that the name was derived from the physical contour, which would be more consistent with the singular use of the word, i.e., the place of "a skull". While often referred to as "Mount Calvary", it was more likely a small hill or rocky knoll.<ref>{{cite web |title=Letter to the Presbyter Faustus |author=Eucherius of Lyon |author-link=Eucherius of Lyon |url=http://homepages.luc.edu/~avande1/jerusalem/sources/eucherius.htm |quote=The three more frequented exit gates are one on the west, another on the east, and a third on the north. As you enter the city from the northern side, the first of the holy places due to the condition of the directions of the streets is to the church which is called the Martyrium, which was by Constantine with great reverence not long ago built up. Next, to the west one visits the connecting places Golgotha and the Anastasis; indeed the Anastasis is in the place of the resurrection, and Golgotha is in the middle between the Anastasis and the Martyrium, the place of the Lord's passion, in which still appears that rock which once endured the very cross on which the Lord was. These are separated places outside of Mount Sion, where the failing rise of the place extended itself to the north. |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080613200112/http://homepages.luc.edu/~avande1/jerusalem/sources/eucherius.htm |archive-date=June 13, 2008 }}</ref>

The traditional site, inside what is now occupied by the [[Church of the Holy Sepulchre|Church of the Holy Sepulcher]] in the [[Christian Quarter]] of the [[Old City (Jerusalem)|Old City]], has been attested since the 4th century. A second site (commonly referred to as Gordon's Calvary<ref>{{cite web|title=General Charles Gordon's Letters Discussing His Discovery of "Cavalry" in Jerusalem|url=https://www.shapell.org/manuscript/calvary-crucifixion-sites-identified/|work=SMF Primary Source Documents|publisher=Shapell Manuscript Foundation}}</ref>), located further north of the Old City near a place popularly called the [[Garden Tomb]], has been promoted since the 19th century.

===People present===
{{See also|Women at the crucifixion}}

[[File:Agnolo Gaddi, crocifissione, uffizi.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|''Crucifixion'' by [[Agnolo Gaddi]], between 1390 and 1396, depicting several [[women at the crucifixion]]]]

The Gospels describe various [[women at the crucifixion]], some of whom are named. According to Mark, many women are present, among them [[Mary Magdalene]], [[Mary, mother of James]] and [[Mary of Clopas]],<ref>{{bibleverse|Mark|15:40|ESV}}</ref> commonly known as "[[the Three Marys|the Three Mary's]]". The Gospel of Matthew also mentions several women being present, among them Mary Magdalene, Mary, mother of James and the mother of Zebedee's children.<ref>{{bibleverse|Matthew|27:55–56|ESV}}</ref> Although a group of women is mentioned in Luke, neither is named.<ref name="bibleverse|Luke|23:49|ESV">{{bibleverse|Luke|23:49|ESV}}</ref> The Gospel of John speaks of women present, among them the [[Mary, mother of Jesus|mother of Jesus]], Mary Magdalene and Mary of Clopas.<ref>{{bibleverse|John|19:25|ESV}}</ref>

Aside from these women, the three Synoptic Gospels speak of the presence of others: "the chief priests, with the scribes and elders",<ref>{{bibleverse|Matthew|27:41|ESV}}, {{bibleverse|Mark|15:31|ESV}}, {{bibleverse|Luke|23:35|ESV}}</ref> two crucified criminals, to Jesus's right left,<ref>{{bibleverse|Mark|15:27|ESV}}, {{bibleverse|Matthew|27:38|ESV}}</ref> "the soldiers",<ref>{{bibleverse|Luke|23:36|ESV}}</ref> "the centurion and those who were with him, keeping watch over Jesus",<ref>{{bibleverse|Matthew|27:54|ESV}}, {{bibleverse|Mark|15:39|ESV}}</ref> passers-by,<ref>{{bibleverse|Mark|15:29|ESV}}, {{bibleverse|Matthew|27:39|ESV}}</ref> "bystanders",<ref>{{bibleverse|Mark|15:35|ESV}}, {{bibleverse|Matthew|27:45|ESV}}, {{bibleverse|Luke|23:35|ESV}}</ref> "the crowds that had assembled for this spectacle",<ref>{{bibleverse|Luke|23:48|ESV}}</ref> and "his acquaintances".<ref name="bibleverse|Luke|23:49|ESV"/> The two criminals are described as ''λῃσταί'' (variously translated as robbers, rebels or thieves) and further discussed in the Gospel of Luke as the [[penitent thief]] and the [[impenitent thief]].<ref>{{bibleverse|Luke|23:39–43|ESV}}</ref>

The Gospel of John mentions the soldiers<ref>{{bibleverse|John|19:23–24|ESV}}, {{bibleverse-nb|John|19:32–34|ESV}}</ref> and "the [[disciple whom Jesus loved]]", who is with the women.<ref>{{bibleverse|John|19:26–27|ESV}}</ref>

The Gospels also tell of the arrival, after the death of Jesus, of [[Joseph of Arimathea]] (in the four Gospels)<ref>{{bibleverse|Mark|16:43–46|ESV}}, {{bibleverse|Matthew|27:57–50|ESV}}, {{bibleverse|Luke|23:50–53|ESV}}, {{bibleverse|John|19:38}}</ref> and of [[Nicodemus]] (only in John).<ref>{{bibleverse|John|19:39|ESV}}</ref>

===Method and manner===
{{Main|Instrument of Jesus' crucifixion}}
[[File:Gustave Doré - Crucifixion of Jesus.jpg|thumb|180px|Crucifixion of Jesus on a two-beamed cross, from the ''Sainte Bible'' (1866)]]
[[File:JUSTUS LIPSIUS 1594 De Cruce p 10 Torture stake.jpg|thumb|200px|right|''Torture stake'', a simple wooden torture stake. Image by [[Justus Lipsius]].]]
Whereas most Christians believe the [[gibbet]] on which Jesus was executed was the traditional two-beamed cross, the [[Jehovah's Witnesses]] hold the view that a single upright stake was used. The Greek and Latin words used in the earliest Christian writings are ambiguous. The [[Koine Greek]] terms used in the New Testament are {{lang|grc-Latn|[[stauros]]}} ({{wikt-lang|grc|σταυρός}}) and {{lang|grc-Latn|xylon}} ({{wikt-lang|grc|ξύλον}}). The latter means wood (a live tree, timber or an object constructed of wood); in earlier forms of Greek, the former term meant an upright stake or pole, but in Koine Greek it was used also to mean a cross.<ref name=LSJ>{{cite web |url=https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.04.0057%3Aentry%3D%2396298 |author1=Henry George Liddell |author2=Robert Scott |work=A Greek–English Lexicon |title=σταυρός |via=[[Tufts University]] |access-date=February 20, 2021 |archive-date=March 7, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080307141335/http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?doc=Perseus:text:1999.04.0057:entry= |url-status=live }}</ref> The Latin word {{wikt-lang|la|crux}} was also applied to objects other than a cross.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:1999.04.0059:entry=crux&highlight=crux |author1=Charlton T. Lewis |author2=Charles Short |title=A Latin Dictionary |via=[[Tufts University]] |access-date=January 15, 2019 |archive-date=December 31, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161231205403/http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:1999.04.0059:entry=crux&highlight=crux |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[Early Christianity|Early Christian]] writers who speak of the shape of the particular gibbet on which Jesus died invariably describe it as having a cross-beam. For instance, the [[Epistle of Barnabas]], which was certainly earlier than 135,<ref>For a discussion of the date of the work, see [http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/barnabas.html Information on Epistle of Barnabas] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100316205715/http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/barnabas.html |date=March 16, 2010 }} and Andrew C. Clark, "Apostleship: Evidence from the New Testament and Early Christian Literature," ''Evangelical Review of Theology,'' 1989, Vol. 13, p. 380</ref> and may have been of the 1st century AD,<ref>[[John Dominic Crossan]], The Cross that Spoke ({{ISBN|978-0-06-254843-6}}), p. 121</ref> the time when the gospel accounts of the death of Jesus were written, likened it to the letter T (the Greek letter [[tau]], which had the [[Greek numerals|numeric]] value of 300),<ref>[[s:Epistle of Barnabas#Chapter 9|Epistle of Barnabas, 9:7–8]]</ref> and to the position assumed by [[Moses]] in {{bibleverse||Exodus|17:11–12|KJV}}.<ref>"The Spirit saith to the heart of Moses, that he should ''make a type of the cross and of Him that was to suffer'', that unless, saith He, they shall set their hope on Him, war shall be waged against them for ever. Moses therefore pileth arms one upon another in the midst of the encounter, and standing on higher ground than any ''he stretched out his hands'', and so Israel was again victorious" (Epistle of Barnabas, 12:2–3).</ref> [[Justin Martyr]] (100–165) explicitly says the cross of Christ was of two-beam shape: "That lamb which was commanded to be wholly roasted was a symbol of the suffering of the cross which Christ would undergo. For the lamb, which is roasted, is roasted and dressed up in the form of the cross. For one spit is transfixed right through from the lower parts up to the head, and one across the back, to which are attached the legs of the lamb."<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/anf01.viii.iv.xl.html|title=Philip Schaff: ANF01. The Apostolic Fathers with Justin Martyr and Irenaeus – Christian Classics Ethereal Library|website=www.ccel.org|access-date=April 2, 2022|archive-date=April 6, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220406140314/https://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/anf01.viii.iv.xl.html|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Irenaeus]], who died around the end of the 2nd century, speaks of the cross as having "five extremities, two in length, two in breadth, and one in the middle, on which [last] the person rests who is fixed by the nails."<ref>Irenaeus, ''[[On the Detection and Overthrow of the So-Called Gnosis|Adversus Haereses]]'', [http://www.newadvent.org/fathers/0103224.htm II, xxiv, 4] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210420085108/http://www.newadvent.org/fathers/0103224.htm |date=April 20, 2021 }}</ref>

The assumption of the use of a two-beamed cross does not determine the number of nails used in the crucifixion and some theories suggest three nails while others suggest four nails.<ref>''The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia'' by Geoffrey W. Bromiley 1988 {{ISBN|0-8028-3785-9}} p. 826</ref> Throughout history, larger numbers of nails have been hypothesized, at times as high as 14 nails.<ref name=Kitto >''Encyclopedia of Biblical Literature, Part 2'' by John Kitto 2003 {{ISBN|0-7661-5980-9}} p. 591</ref> These variations are also present in the artistic depictions of the crucifixion.<ref name=IreneE >''Renaissance art: a topical dictionary'' by Irene Earls 1987 {{ISBN|0-313-24658-0}} p. 64</ref> In [[Western Christianity]], before the [[Renaissance]] usually four nails would be depicted, with the feet side by side. After the Renaissance most depictions use three nails, with one foot placed on the other.<ref name=IreneE /> Nails are almost always depicted in art, although [[Roman Empire|Romans]] sometimes just tied the victims to the cross.<ref name=IreneE /> The tradition also carries to Christian [[emblem]]s, e.g. the [[Jesuits]] use three nails under the [[Holy Name of Jesus|IHS monogram]] and a cross to symbolize the crucifixion.<ref>''The visual arts: a history'' by Hugh Honour, John Fleming 1995 {{ISBN|0-8109-3928-2}} p. 526</ref>

The placing of the nails in the hands, or the wrists is also uncertain. Some theories suggest that the Greek word {{lang|grc-Latn|cheir}} ({{wikt-lang|grc|χείρ}}) for hand includes the wrist and that the Romans were generally trained to place nails through [[Destot's space]] (between the [[capitate]] and [[lunate bone]]s) without fracturing any bones.<ref name=Ball82 >''The Crucifixion and Death of a Man Called Jesus'' by David A Ball 2010 {{ISBN|1-61507-128-8}} pp. 82–84</ref> Another theory suggests that the Greek word for hand also includes the forearm and that the nails were placed near the [[Radius (bone)|radius]] and [[ulna]] of the [[forearm]].<ref name=Moore639 >''The Chronological Life of Christ'' by Mark E. Moore 2007 {{ISBN|0-89900-955-7}} pp.&nbsp;639–643</ref> Ropes may have also been used to fasten the hands in addition to the use of nails.<ref>''Holman Concise Bible Dictionary'' Holman, 2011 {{ISBN|0-8054-9548-7}} p. 148</ref>

Another issue of debate has been the use of a hypopodium as a standing platform to support the feet, given that the hands may not have been able to support the weight. In the 17th century [[Rasmus Bartholin]] considered a number of analytical scenarios of that topic.<ref name=Kitto /> In the 20th century, forensic pathologist [[Frederick Zugibe]] performed a number of crucifixion experiments by using ropes to hang human subjects at various angles and hand positions.<ref name=Moore639 /> His experiments support an angled suspension, and a two-beamed cross, and perhaps some form of foot support, given that in an {{lang|de|Aufbinden}} form of suspension from a straight stake (as used by the [[Nazi]]s in the [[Dachau concentration camp]] during [[World War II]]), death comes rather quickly.<ref>''Crucifixion and the Death Cry of Jesus Christ'' by Geoffrey L Phelan MD, 2009 {{ISBN?}} pp.&nbsp;106–111</ref>

===Words of Jesus spoken from the cross===
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{{Main|Sayings of Jesus on the cross}}
[[File:Brooklyn Museum - What Our Lord Saw from the Cross (Ce que voyait Notre-Seigneur sur la Croix) - James Tissot.jpg|thumb|right|''[[Crucifixion, seen from the Cross]]'', by [[James Tissot]], c. 1890, [[Brooklyn Museum]]]]
The Gospels describe various [[last words]] that Jesus said while on the cross,<ref>Thomas W. Walker, ''Luke'', (Westminster John Knox Press, 2013) p. 84.</ref> as follows:

====Mark / Matthew====
* {{lang|arc-Latn|E′li, E′li, la′ma sa‧bach‧tha′ni?}} <ref>{{bibleverse|Mt.|27:46}}, {{bibleverse|Mk.|15:34}}</ref> ([[Aramaic language|Aramaic]] for "My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?"). Aramaic linguist Steve Caruso said Jesus most likely spoke Galilean Aramaic,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://aramaicnt.org/what-is-galilean-aramaic/ |title=What is Galilean Aramaic? &#124; The Aramaic New Testament |publisher=Aramaicnt.org |date=March 31, 2015 |access-date=January 15, 2019 |archive-date=January 22, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190122013147/http://aramaicnt.org/what-is-galilean-aramaic/ |url-status=live }}</ref> which would render the pronunciation of these words: {{lang|arc|[http://aramaicnt.org/2015/03/31/my-god-my-god-why-have-you-forsaken-me/ əlahí əlahí ləmáh šəvaqtáni]}}.<ref>{{Cite web|url = http://aramaicnt.org/2015/03/31/my-god-my-god-why-have-you-forsaken-me/|title = My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?|date = March 31, 2015|access-date = April 7, 2023|archive-date = April 7, 2023|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230407104433/http://aramaicnt.org/2015/03/31/my-god-my-god-why-have-you-forsaken-me/|url-status = live}}</ref>

The only words of Jesus on the cross mentioned in the Mark and Matthew accounts, this is a quotation of [[Psalm 22]]. Since other verses of the same Psalm are cited in the crucifixion accounts, some commentators consider it a literary and theological creation. [[Geza Vermes]] noted the verse is cited in Aramaic rather than the usual Hebrew, and that by the time of Jesus, this phrase had become a proverbial saying in common usage.<ref>Geza Vermes, ''The Passion'' (Penguin, 2005) p. 75.</ref> Compared to the accounts in the other Gospels, which he describes as "theologically correct and reassuring", he considers this phrase "unexpected, disquieting and in consequence more probable".<ref>Geza Vermes, ''The Passion'' (Penguin, 2005) p. 114.</ref> He describes it as bearing "all the appearances of a genuine cry".<ref>Geza Vermes, ''The Passion'' (Penguin, 2005) p. 122.</ref> [[Raymond E. Brown|Raymond Brown]] likewise comments that he finds "no persuasive argument against attributing to the Jesus of Mark/Matt the literal sentiment of feeling forsaken expressed in the Psalm quote".<ref>Raymond Brown, ''The Death of the Messiah'' Volume II (Doubleday, 1994) p. 1051</ref>

====Luke====
* "Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing."<ref>{{bibleverse|Lk.|23:34}}</ref> [Some early manuscripts do not have this]
* "Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in Paradise."<ref>{{bibleverse|Lk.|23:43}}</ref>
* "Father, into your hands I commend my spirit."<ref>{{bibleverse|Lk.|23:46}}</ref>

The Gospel of Luke does not include the aforementioned exclamation of Jesus mentioned in Matthew and Mark.<ref>John Haralson Hayes, ''Biblical Exegesis: A Beginner's Handbook'' (Westminster John Knox Press, 1987) pp. 104–105. The author suggests this possibly was designed to play down the suffering of Jesus and replace a cry of desperation with one of hope and confidence, in keeping with the message of the Gospel in which Jesus dies confident that he would be vindicated as God's righteous prophet.</ref>

====John====
* "Woman, here is your son."<ref>{{bibleverse|Jn.|19:25–27}}</ref>
* "I am thirsty."<ref>{{bibleverse|Jn.|19:28}}</ref>
* "It is finished."<ref>{{bibleverse|Jn.|19:30}}</ref>

The words of Jesus on the cross, especially his [[last words]], have been the subject of a wide range of Christian teachings and sermons, and a number of authors have written books specifically devoted to the last sayings of Christ.<ref>David Anderson-Berry, 1871 ''The Seven Sayings of Christ on the Cross'', Glasgow: Pickering & Inglis Publishers</ref><ref>Rev. John Edmunds, 1855 ''The seven sayings of Christ on the cross'' Thomas Hatchford Publishers, London, p. 26</ref><ref>Arthur Pink, 2005 ''The Seven Sayings of the Saviour on the Cross'' Baker Books {{ISBN|0-8010-6573-9}}</ref><ref>Simon Peter Long, 1966 ''The wounded Word: A brief meditation on the seven sayings of Christ on the cross'' Baker Books</ref><ref>John Ross Macduff, 1857 ''The Words of Jesus'' New York: Thomas Stanford Publishers, p. 76</ref><ref>Alexander Watson, 1847 ''The seven sayings on the Cross'' John Masters Publishers, London, p. 5. The difference between the accounts is cited by [[James Dunn (theologian)|James Dunn]] as a reason to doubt their historicity. James G. D. Dunn, ''Jesus Remembered'', (Eerdmans, 2003) pp.&nbsp;779–781.</ref>

===Reported extraordinary occurrences===
The synoptics report various [[miracle|miraculous]] events during the crucifixion.<ref>''[https://books.google.com/books?id=bF0AAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA86 Scott's Monthly Magazine] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221123113218/https://books.google.com/books?id=bF0AAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA86 |date=November 23, 2022 }}''. J.J. Toon; 1868. The Miracles Coincident With The Crucifixion, by H.P.B. pp. 86–89.</ref><ref name="Watson2012">Richard Watson. ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=FVFHmW1ySWUC&pg=PA81 An Apology for the Bible: In a Series of Letters Addressed to Thomas Paine] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221123113213/https://books.google.com/books?id=FVFHmW1ySWUC&pg=PA81 |date=November 23, 2022 }}''. Cambridge University Press; 2012. {{ISBN|978-1-107-60004-1}}. pp. 81–.</ref> Mark mentions a period of darkness in the daytime during  Jesus's crucifixion, and the Temple veil being torn in two when Jesus dies.<ref name = "ActJMark"/> Luke follows Mark;<ref name = "ActJLuke"/> as does Matthew, additionally mentioning an earthquake and the [[Matthew 27:53|resurrection of dead saints]].<ref name="ActJMatthew"/> No mention of any of these appears in John.<ref name="Harris John">[[Stephen L Harris|Harris, Stephen L.]], Understanding the Bible. Palo Alto: Mayfield. 1985. "John" pp.&nbsp;302–310</ref>

====Darkness====
{{Main|Crucifixion darkness}}
[[File:Christ at the Cross - Cristo en la Cruz.jpg|thumb|''Christ on the Cross'', by [[Carl Heinrich Bloch]], showing the skies darkened]]
In the synoptic narrative, while Jesus is hanging on the cross, the sky over [[Judaea]] (or the whole world) is "darkened for three hours," from the sixth to the ninth hour (noon to mid-afternoon). There is no reference to darkness in the Gospel of John account, in which the crucifixion does not take place until after noon.<ref>Edwin Keith Broadhead ''Prophet, Son, Messiah: Narrative Form and Function in Mark'' (Continuum, 1994) p. 196.</ref>

Some ancient Christian writers considered the possibility that pagan commentators may have mentioned this event and mistook it for a solar eclipse, pointing out that an eclipse could not occur during the Passover, which takes place during the full moon when the moon is opposite the sun rather than in front of it. Christian traveler and historian [[Sextus Julius Africanus]] and Christian theologian [[Origen]] refer to Greek historian [[Phlegon of Tralles|Phlegon]], who lived in the 2nd century AD, as having written "with regard to the eclipse in the time of Tiberius Caesar, in whose reign Jesus appears to have been crucified, and the great earthquakes which then took place".<ref>{{cite web |author=Origen |author-link=Origen |title=''Contra Celsum (Against Celsus)'', Book 2, XXXIII |url=http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/text/origen162.html |access-date=May 5, 2008 |archive-date=January 9, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190109124702/http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/text/origen162.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

Sextus Julius Africanus further refers to the writings of historian [[Thallus (historian)|Thallus]]: "This darkness Thallus, in the third book of his History, calls, as appears to me without reason, an eclipse of the sun. For the Hebrews celebrate the Passover on the 14th day according to the moon, and the passion of our Saviour falls on the day before the Passover; but an eclipse of the sun takes place only when the moon comes under the sun."<ref>{{cite book |title=The ante-Nicene fathers |last=Donaldson |first=Coxe |publisher=The Christian Literature Publishing Co. |volume=6 |year=1888 |location=New York |page=136 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=P5gsAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA136 |access-date=November 28, 2015 |archive-date=April 7, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230407154456/https://books.google.com/books?id=P5gsAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA136 |url-status=live }}</ref> Christian apologist [[Tertullian]] believed the event was documented in the Roman archives.<ref>"In the same hour, too, the light of day was withdrawn, when the sun at the very time was in his meridian blaze. Those who were not aware that this had been predicted about Christ, no doubt thought it an eclipse. You yourselves have the account of the world-portent still in your archives."{{cite web |author=Tertullian |author-link=Tertullian |title=''Apologeticum'' |url=http://earlychristianwritings.com/text/tertullian01.html |access-date=May 5, 2008 |archive-date=April 6, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220406140313/http://earlychristianwritings.com/text/tertullian01.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

Colin Humphreys and W. G. Waddington of [[Oxford University]] considered the possibility that a lunar, rather than solar, eclipse might have taken place.<ref name="HumWadJASA">Colin J. Humphreys and W. G. Waddington, ''The Date of the Crucifixion '' Journal of the American Scientific Affiliation 37 (March 1985)[http://www.asa3.org/aSA/PSCF/1985/JASA3-85Humphreys.html] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100408114419/http://www.asa3.org/aSA/PSCF/1985/JASA3-85Humphreys.html|date=April 8, 2010}}</ref><ref>[[Colin Humphreys]], ''The Mystery of the Last Supper'' Cambridge University Press 2011 {{ISBN|978-0-521-73200-0}}, p. 193</ref> They concluded that such an eclipse would have been visible for 30 minutes in Jerusalem and suggested the gospel reference to a solar eclipse was the result of a scribe wrongly amending a text. Historian David Henige dismisses this explanation as "indefensible",<ref name="henige">{{cite book | last=Henige | first=David P. | author-link=David Henige | title=Historical evidence and argument | publisher=University of Wisconsin Press | isbn=978-0-299-21410-4 | year=2005}}</ref> and astronomer Bradley Schaefer points out that the lunar eclipse would not have been visible during daylight hours.<ref>Schaefer, B. E. (March 1990). Lunar visibility and the crucifixion. Royal Astronomical Society Quarterly Journal, 31(1), 53–67</ref><ref>Schaefer, B. E. (July 1991). Glare and celestial visibility. Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific, 103, 645–660.</ref>

In an edition of the BBC Radio 4 programmed In Our Time entitled Eclipses, [[Frank Close]], Emeritus Professor of Physics at the University of Oxford, stated that certain historical sources say that on the night of the Crucifixion "the moon had risen blood red," which indicates a lunar eclipse. He went on to confirm that as Passover takes place on the full moon calculating back shows that a lunar eclipse did in fact take place on the night of Passover on Friday, 3 April 33 AD which would have been visible in the area of modern Israel, ancient Judaea, just after sunset.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000qmnj|title=BBC Radio 4 – in Our Time, Eclipses|access-date=December 31, 2020|archive-date=April 6, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220406140313/https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000qmnj|url-status=live}}</ref>

Modern biblical scholarship treats the account in the synoptic gospels as a literary creation by the author of the Mark Gospel, amended in the Luke and Matthew accounts, intended to heighten the importance of what they saw as a theologically significant event, and not intended to be taken literally.<ref>Burton L. Mack, ''A Myth of Innocence: Mark and Christian Origins'' (Fortress Press, 1988) p. 296; George Bradford Caird, ''The language and imagery of the Bible'' (Westminster Press, 1980), p. 186; Joseph Fitzmyer, ''The Gospel According to Luke, X–XXIV'' (Doubleday, 1985) p. 1513; William David Davies, Dale Allison, ''Matthew: Volume 3'' (Continuum, 1997) p. 623.</ref> This image of darkness over the land would have been understood by ancient readers, a typical element in the description of the death of kings and other major figures by writers such as [[Philo]], [[Dio Cassius]], [[Virgil]], [[Plutarch]] and [[Josephus]].<ref>David E. Garland, ''Reading Matthew: A Literary and Theological Commentary on the First Gospel'' (Smyth & Helwys Publishing, 1999) p. 264.</ref> [[Géza Vermes]] describes the darkness account as typical of "Jewish eschatological imagery of the day of the Lord", and says that those interpreting it as a datable eclipse are "barking up the wrong tree".<ref>Géza Vermes, ''The Passion'' (Penguin, 2005) pp. 108–109.</ref>

====Temple veil, earthquake and resurrection of dead saints====
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The synoptic gospels state that the [[Veil#Biblical references|veil]] of [[temple in Jerusalem|the temple]] was torn from top to bottom.

The Gospel of Matthew mentions an account of earthquakes, rocks splitting, and the opening of the graves of dead [[saint]]s, and describes how these resurrected saints went into the holy city and appeared to many people.<ref>{{bibleverse|Mt.|27:51–53}}</ref>

In the Mark and Matthew accounts, the [[Longinus|centurion in charge]] comments on the events: "Truly this man was the Son of God!"<ref>{{bibleverse|Mk.|15:39}}</ref> or "Truly this was the [[Son of God]]!".<ref>{{bibleverse|Mt.|27:54}}</ref> The Gospel of Luke quotes him as saying, "Certainly this man was innocent!"<ref>{{bibleverse|Lk.|23:47}}</ref><ref>New Revised Standard Version; New International Version renders "...this was a righteous man".</ref>

The historian [[Sextus Julius Africanus]] in the early [[third century]] wrote, describing the day of the crucifixion, "A most terrible darkness fell over all the world, the rocks were torn apart by an earthquake, and many places both in Judaea and the rest of the world were thrown down. In the third book of his Histories, [[Thallus (historian)|Thallos]] dismisses this darkness as a solar eclipse. ..."<ref name=Africanus>[[George Syncellus]], ''Chronography'', [http://www.tertullian.org/rpearse/syncellus/#E1 chapter 391] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210411014004/http://www.tertullian.org/rpearse/syncellus/#E1 |date=April 11, 2021 }}.</ref>

A widespread 5.5 magnitude earthquake has been hypothesized to have taken place between 26 and 36 AD. This earthquake was dated by counting [[varve]]s (annual layers of sediment) between the disruptions in a core of sediment from [[En Gedi]] caused by it and by an earlier known quake in 31&nbsp;BC.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Jefferson Williams, Markus Schwab and Achim Brauer |title=An early first-century earthquake in the Dead Sea' |journal=International Geology Review |date=Jul 2012 |volume=54 |issue=10 |pages=1219–1228 |doi=10.1080/00206814.2011.639996 |bibcode=2012IGRv...54.1219W |s2cid=129604597 |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/229810999}}</ref> Although other earthquakes may have been responsible, the authors concluded that either this was the earthquake in Matthew and it occurred more or less as reported, or else Matthew "borrowed" this earthquake which actually occurred at another time or simply inserted an "allegorical fiction".