White Crucifixion

work by Chagall

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Last updated

July 17, 2026

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"White Crucifixion" is a 1938 painting by Marc Chagall. It depicts Jewish and Christian symbols, with a crucified Christ figure wrapped in a Jewish prayer shawl, surrounded by imagery of German Jews terrorized by a Nazi mob. This work reflects the rising threat of World War II and the persecution of Jews in Europe. Crucifixion itself was an ancient method of capital punishment used by various empires, including the Persians and Romans, until abolished by Constantine the Great in the 4th century CE out of reverence for Jesus Christ, its most famous victim.12

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Christology
Early 20th century to the present
…allusions—the cross is barely discernible—his White Crucifixion (1938) categorically puts Jesus in a Jewish context by depicting him with a Jewish prayer shawl around his waist.
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…allusions—the cross is barely discernible—his White Crucifixion (1938) categorically puts Jesus in a Jewish context by depicting him with a Jewish prayer shawl around his waist.
Read More