Iconography

The Crucifixion of Jesus Christ was the moment that all humankind was redeemed for their sinful lived. God, at this time, sent down his only son to make up for the sins of the world and therefore, watched him suffer and die for the sake of others. The depiction of the crucifixion that I have chosen to analyze is a simple, yet emotional icon that speaks to its viewers in many different ways. The icon is full of symbols and emotions.

There are many important symbols that are represented in this icon that describe Jesus’ death through imagery. The cross that Jesus was crucified upon, as though he was some kind of evil criminal, describes much about the sorrowful event. At the top of the cross, the initials I.N.B.I were nailed to make a mockery of Jesus’ death. The initials were from the Greek language, spelling, “Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews.” This was a man who had the power to come down from the cross and save himself, but humbly stayed upon the cross in tremendous pain for the sake of humanity. God’s love for us was so strong that he sent down the only son he had, and watched him go through this horrific ordeal at the hands of evil men, in order to free mankind from their state of sin. He watched Jesus be mocked by the foolish soldiers and on lookers who had no sense of the power this man held in his hands. He knew that these men had no knowledge of what they were doing. The initials I.N.B.I were placed above his head as a form of embarrassment. They believed that Jesus was committing the greatest crime of treason by claiming he was the son of God. By placing these initials above his head, the soldiers were inflicting more mockery and hatred towards Jesus by insulting his mission on earth.

One important aspect of the icon is the actual way the cross was built. At the bottom of the cross, right below his feet, there was a ledge. This ledge was important during his suffering for different reasons. In my opinion, I believe that it was there to pro-long his death, and cause him more suffering. By having this ledge, Jesus’ feet could rest and would allow him to live longer undergoing extreme pain. He would have had enough strength from this extra support to keep his head up and be able to take breaths. However, even while undergoing this dragged out suffering, he was able to conduct his last words, which leads me to the next significant image within the icon: the dialogue between Jesus’ mother, Mary and His dearly beloved apostle, John.

At first glance, I was surprised that only two figures had been painted at the foot of the cross; while, in all accounts of the crucifixion within the Bible it is written that there were several women there. But the selection of simply painting Mary and John proved significant because it was these two people that had such an important role to play during the