Jesus and Christ - стр. 68

– Let me begin," Rangit's voice interrupted their discussion. – Since it was decided without presumption that I should be characterized as a robotic parrot, I'll start with that role, and then we can talk about this and that.

The last statement elicited laughter from the audience.

–In the works of Herodotus, – began as if Jesus, walking around the pulpit, which made the audience feel like students before important exams, concentrate on the lecturer, – as well as other ancient authors, – continued Rangit, satisfied with the attention to himself, – you can find mention of crucifixion, this method of execution was used by Babylonians. They motivated the choice of such method of execution by unwillingness to desecrate the land dedicated to Ahuramazda with dead bodies of executed criminals. The question arises – what did they do with the corpses afterwards? According to some extant information – burned, and more often left to decompose for wild birds and animals. This type of punishment spread in Greece, the Middle East, Egypt and Phoenicia somewhere in the IV century BC, after the conquest of Persia by Alexander the Great, and then throughout the conquered lands. Such a method of execution was not invented by the Romans, they adopted it from their enemies, and not simple, but systematic, epochal, – the Carthaginians. Although in those times, especially in the European part of the Roman and Hellenic world, there was an extremely negative attitude towards execution by crucifixion. Hellenes perceived this execution as extremely humiliating and unworthy, Jews considered those executed on the cross as cursed. The Romans saw it as a shameful execution. This is rather strange to me though: the Romans had a method of execution by burning. Agreed, a dubious superiority to execution on the cross. Apparently, the shame consisted in some aesthetic issues that were left out of the picture: the condemned person was drained of his vital products in the process and after the sentence was carried out. The Latins called this method of execution servile supplicium, a punishment for slaves (Tacitus. Hist. IV, 11; Juvenal. Satires. VI, 219). Originally Greek law, and later Roman law, forbade the subjection of free citizens to crucifixion. In the Roman Republic crucifixion was used not only to punish slaves, but also deserters and state criminals. The famous event with the largest number of people executed by this method – 6,000 rebellious slaves crucified by order of Pompey along the Appian Road leading to Rome, after the defeat of Spartacus' revolt, unites all the criteria inherent in the criminals classified in this category. The judge's sentence of death was: ibis ad (or in) crucem – "you shall go to the cross!" After the sentence was pronounced, the condemned was scourged. He was stripped of his clothes and tied by the hands to a post in the court area, flogged with a short whip called flagrum (or flagellum). The lash consisted of a handle to which leather straps of varying lengths were attached, with pieces of lead woven into the ends and jagged bone fragments along the length.