Crurifragium: the legs of the person executed were broken or shattered with an iron club.

While a crucifixion was an execution, it was also a humiliation, by making the condemned as
vulnerable as possible. Although artists have traditionally depicted the figure on a cross with a loin
cloth or a covering of the genitals, the person being crucified was usually stripped naked.

Frequently, there was a cross-piece attached either at the top to give the shape of a T (crux
commissa) or just below the top, as in the form most familiar in Christian symbolism (crux immissa).

In popular depictions of the crucifixion of, Jesus is shown with nails in his hands. But in Greek the
word "χείρ", usually translated as "hand", could refer to the entire portion of the arm below the
elbow,[38] and to denote the hand as distinct from the arm some other word could be added, as
"ἄκρην οὔτασε χεῖρα" (he wounded the end of the χείρ, i.e., "he wounded her in the hand".[39]
A possibility that does not require tying is that the nails were inserted just above the wrist, between
the two bones of the forearm (the radius and the ulna).[40]
An experiment that was the subject of a documentary on the National Geographic Channel's Quest
For Truth: The Crucifixion,[41]showed that nailed feet provided enough support for the body, and that
the hands could have been merely tied. Nailing the feet to the side of the cross relieves strain on the
wrists by placing most of the weight on the lower body.
Another possibility, suggested by Frederick Zugibe, is that the nails may have been driven in at an
angle, entering in the palm in the crease that delineates the bulky region at the base of the thumb,
and exiting in the wrist, passing through the carpal tunnel.

The length of time required to reach death could range from hours to days depending on method,
the victim's health, and the environment. A literature review by Maslen and Mitchell[48] identified
scholarly support for several possible causes of death: cardiac rupture,[49] heart
failure,[50] hypovolemic shock,[51] acidosis,[52] asphyxia,[53] arrhythmia,[54] and pulmonary
embolism.[55] Death could result from any combination of those factors or from other causes,
including sepsis following infection due to the wounds caused by the nails or by the scourging that
often preceded crucifixion, eventual dehydration, or animal predation.[56][57]
A theory attributed to Pierre Barbet holds that, when the whole body weight was supported by the
stretched arms, the typical cause of death was asphyxiation.[58] He wrote that the condemned would
have severe difficulty inhaling, due to hyper-expansion of the chest muscles and lungs. The
condemned would therefore have to draw himself up by the arms, leading to exhaustion, or have his
feet supported by tying or by a wood block. When no longer able to lift himself, the condemned
would die within a few minutes. Some scholars, including Frederick Zugibe, posit other causes of
death. Zugibe suspended test subjects with their arms at 60° to 70° from the vertical. The test
subjects had no difficulty breathing during experiments, but did suffer rapidly increasing
pain,[59][60] which is consistent with the Roman use of crucifixion to achieve a prolonged, agonizing
death. However, Zugibe's positioning of the test subjects' feet is not supported by any archaeological
or historical evidence.[61]