Almost 170 years have passed, but it is not difficult to imagine the surprise of archaeologists who discovered the “Alexamenos Graffiti” while working on the Palatine Hill in Rome in 1857. And it can be compressed. What they find scrawled on an old plaster wall is what is generally considered the oldest “drawing” of the Crucifixion. Moreover, there are those who believe that this is the first known representation of Jesus Christ. But what’s truly fascinating is neither its age nor whether it is the oldest artistic representation of Jesus on the cross. No. What’s fascinating is what it shows us: a donkey-headed Jesus that bears little resemblance to the portraits we’re used to.

And it makes sense that it should.

In the end, everything indicates that the engraving was not intended to venerate Jesus.

A plaster wall full of scratches. This finding is not new. It dates back to the mid-19th century when archaeologists worked in the area. PedagogyA building attached to the imperial palace on Palatine Hill, where it is believed that the slaves assigned to serve Caesar’s family were trained.

During their investigation, archaeologists noticed a white plastered wall on which several scratched figures were still visible, as if they were modern graffiti. It caught their attention so much that the piece of wall in question ended up in the Antiquarium Palatino. Today, the image, consisting of rough and basic lines, is believed to date from the Severan period, at the end of the second and beginning of the third century.

But… So what does this show? A crucifixion that has little relevance in itself. If the work has intrigued historians for more than a century, it is because of its detail and message. The graphite shows two figures: one is a man with one arm raised at the base of the cross; The other is a human figure hanging from the boards, higher than the previous one and with its arms extended.

There’s nothing out of the ordinary about this second character, other than the fact that he has a giant donkey head. The composition is completed by the Greek ipsilon (Y) engraved in the upper right corner and a large inscription at the bottom that reads: “Αλεξαμενος σέβετε θεον”i.e. “Alexamenos worships [su] God”.

beyond engraving. Of course, the image brings with it some unknowns: Who painted it on the wall? Because? Who was he addressing? So what did he want to represent? Over the decades, many writers have tried to answer these questions. For experts like Divinity University’s Robyn J. Whitaker, there’s little room for doubt: Everything points to this being a “parody of Christians.” The same reading includes the Palatine Museum, which describes the mysterious graffiti in its catalogue: “The scene is probably intended to mock a Christian, possibly the Alexámenos in question.”

Outline of “Alexamenos Graffiti”.

An attempt at impeachment? There are those, like Kimberley Fowler, who go even further and devote themselves entirely to researching the history of ancient Christianity. Although he acknowledges that there are still “many unanswered questions” and that the engraving is open to different interpretations, one thing is clear: it opens “a window” into the life of a Christian who lived in Rome between the 2nd and 3rd centuries. According to him, it is not unreasonable to think that the author of the article wanted to make fun of Alexámenos. Or worse, publicly calling him out for his religious beliefs.

“One wonders to what extent Alexámenos’s graffiti was malicious. Was it harmless mockery? Or was he intended to expose the religious beliefs of a colleague in the imperial court, perhaps out of fear or intimidation of sharing the same house? and a member of Caesar’s staff. Is it possible that one of his co-workers, upon learning that another person also belongs to this group, will try to unmask a follower, which is considered a superstitious and heretical act?

Why donkey and cross? Another one of the big questions. To answer this, we must consider the meanings of the cross and the donkey in Rome 1900 years ago. As Whitaker recalls, in first-century Rome, crucifixion was seen as a “cruel, violent” and, above all, sinister form of execution designed to “publicly shame the victim by displaying him naked on a gallows.” “It was shameful for some of the early Christians that Jesus suffered such an undignified death.” According to the University of Theology expert, this is exactly what the author was looking for: “to make fun of the way Jesus died.”

Although today the cross – the image of Jesus on the cross – is probably the most used religious symbol in Christianity, represented in churches around the world, this was not always the case. Felicity Harley-McGowan, an expert on early Christian art, points out that Christians did not begin to experiment with their own religious representations until two centuries after Jesus’ death. Crucifixion representations would not expand until the 6th or 5th century, when Maskell’s Passion is dated. Of course there were images before, but they were more focused on pastoral, biblical scenes or the resurrection.

“Alexamenos Graphite”.

What about donkey head? It is no coincidence that the author of the graphite chose the donkey head. If the cross has a special meaning in its context, something similar happened with the foal. “Scholars have discussed the possibility that the depiction of the crucified donkey-man responds to rumors that both Jews and Christians worshiped a donkey-shaped god,” says Fowler.

“For example, Roman historian Tacitus states that after being expelled from Egypt, thirsty Jews wandering in the desert followed a herd of donkeys to a water fountain, and this led them to erect a picture of a donkey in the temple. Christian writer Tertullian later stated that Christians worshiped the same image and had a donkey head. “They report that they were accused of possessing God,” the researcher adds, noting that the painting addressed to Alexámenos could also be inspired by the stories and “anti-Semitic Alexandria.” “feeling.

a historical artifact. If graphite, discovered in Rome in 1857, is so important, it is not only due to its content and meaning. It is often cited as the earliest depiction of the crucifixion. At least the oldest one found to date. This is reported by The Catholic Spirit, National Catholic Register, Archaeo-Histories, InfoCatólica or Professor Fowler, among others.

Even the Palatine Museum in Rome presents it in its catalog as “one of the first representations of the crucifixion.” There are those who go even further and present it as the oldest graphic representation of Jesus. If this is the case, it is still ironic that this is a satirical image with a clear “anti-Christian” reading.

Pictures | Wikipedia 1 and 2

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