Depicting Christ crucified - a very brief history

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Earliest Known Depictions of a Crucifix (Christian & Pagan, Roman Empire)

1. Earliest Christian Depictions of the Crucifixion​

The Staurogram (Late 2nd to Early 3rd Century CE)

The earliest Christian visual representation of Jesus on the cross is not a picture of a body but a symbol: the staurogram (a ligature of the Greek letters tau + rho).

• It appears in manuscripts such as Bodmer Papyrus P75.
• Scholars argue it visually evokes a crucified figure and predates later crucifixion art by 150–200 years.

The Alexamenos Graffito (1st–3rd Century CE)

This is the earliest known pictorial depiction of Jesus on a cross — but it’s hostile, not devotional.

• Found on the Palatine Hill in Rome.
• Shows a man worshipping a donkey‑headed figure on a cross.
• Dates between the 1st and 3rd centuries CE.
• It’s a pagan/Roman mockery of Christian worship, not Christian art.

Devotional Christian Crucifixion Art (4th Century CE)

Traditional Christian crucifixion scenes — Jesus’ body on a cross — do not appear until the 4th century CE, after Constantine’s legalization of Christianity.

• Crucifixion imagery becomes common only after crucifixion itself was abolished and no longer socially taboo.

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2. Pagan / Roman Depictions of Crucifixion​

The Romans depicted crucifixion long before Christians did, but not as religious symbols — rather as scenes of punishment.

Roman Crucifixion Art (Pre‑Christian, 1st Century BCE onward)​

Roman and Greco‑Roman art occasionally depicted crucifixion as a judicial act.

• These appear in graffiti, funerary art, and satirical sketches.
• They are not “crucifixes” in the Christian sense but are depictions of crucified bodies.

The Alexamenos graffito again counts here as well — it is a Roman pagan depiction of a crucified figure (mocking a Christian) and is the earliest surviving depiction of a crucifixion scene in the Roman Empire.

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Summary Table​

Category	Earliest Known Example	Date	Notes
Christian symbolic depiction	Staurogram	Late 2nd–early 3rd c. CE	Symbolic representation of Jesus on the cross
Christian pictorial depiction	Alexamenos graffito (hostile)	1st–3rd c. CE	Pagan mockery of Christian worship; earliest crucifixion image linked to Jesus
Christian devotional crucifixion art	Various 4th‑century artworks	4th c. CE	First positive Christian images of Jesus on the cross
Pagan/Roman depictions of crucifixion	Various judicial/punitive scenes	1st c. BCE onward	Depictions of crucified criminals; not religious symbols

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Bottom Line​

• The earliest Christian “crucifix” is the staurogram (late 2nd–early 3rd century).
• The earliest pictorial depiction of Jesus on a cross is the Alexamenos graffito (1st–3rd century), though it is pagan mockery.
• The earliest devotional Christian crucifixion art appears in the 4th century, after Constantine.
• Pagan Roman depictions of crucifixion predate Christian ones and appear throughout the early empire.