Ornate Metal Crucifix. Ready to hang. Small open shell at base for offerings. 

Size: 9 1/2 x 15 x 3 in. 

#7756 . 

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 at least the 4th Century AD, frequently including the appearance of onlookers such as the Virgin Mary, Pontius Pilate, unrepentant crowds, and angels. 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. In images from after the end of the Byzantine Iconoclasm Christ is more often shown as dead, but his “body is undamaged and there is no expression of pain,” as the Eastern church held that Christ’s body was invulnerable. The common S-shaped slumped body type was developed some time in the 11th Century. Crete became the epicenter of Greek painting during the Renaissance and Baroque eras, with an explosion of painters depicting the Crucifixion. Their work was heavily influenced by Venetian painting but followed the Greek mannerism prevalent at the time known as the Maniera Greca. A mixture of Venetian painting and the traditional Greek Byzantine Style influenced the rest of Europe, as new colors were added and many painters chose to use gold-gilded backgrounds while also modernizing the dimensionality of the figures. Although according to 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. The Old Masters and their many disciples created endless variations of the moment, and in modern times the crucifixion has increasingly been depicted in more abstract or even parodic ways, reflecting the change in attitudes and a general secular shift in the art world.