Crucifixion is an ancient method of execution, where the condemned is tied or nailed to a large wooden cross and left to hang until dead. This form of execution was widely practiced in Ancient Rome and in neighbouring Mediterranean cultures; similar methods were invented in the Persian Empire."The first recorded instances of crucifixion are found in Persia, where it was believed that since the earth was sacred, the burial of the body of a notorious criminal would desecrate the ground. The birds above and the dogs below would dispose of the remains." Smith, Damian Barry, The Trauma of the Cross: How the Followers of Jesus Came to Understand the Crucifixion, p. 14. Paulist Press: Mahwah, New Jersey, 1999. Crucifixion was used by the Romans until about AD 313, when Christianity was legalized in the Roman Empire and soon became the official state religion; however, it has been used in various places in modern times.

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