The Thief, the Cross, and the Wheel

Download or read book The Thief, the Cross, and the Wheel written by Mitchell B. Merback and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 1999-07 with total page 364 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Christ's Crucifixion is one of the most recognized images in Western visual culture, and it has come to stand as a universal symbol of both suffering and salvation. But often overlooked in this symbolic language is the fact that ultimately the Crucifixion is a scene of capital punishment. In The Thief, the Cross and the Wheel, Mitchell Merback reconstructs the religious, legal, and historical context of the Crucifixion and of other images of public torture. The result is an account of a time when criminal justice and religion were entirely interrelated and punishment was a visual spectacle devoured by a popular audience.