Crucifixion as Spectacle in Roman Campania

Abstract Four artifacts from ancient Campania illuminate Roman crucifixion: a notice in Pompeii announcing the execution of some individuals by crucifixion in Cumae during a gladiatorial spectacle; the lex Puteolana which regulated both the crucifixion at private expense of slaves and public crucifixions in that town; the lex Cumana which probably regulated crucifixion there; and a graffito in a taberna of Puteoli that appears to be the oldest surviving Roman portrayal of crucifixion in existence. This evidence provides those in the guild of New Testament studies with additional tools for understanding the scandalous nature of Paul’s gospel of the crucified Christ.