Dr. Gunther von Hagens Sets Record Straight On 'Crucifixion TV Show' Rumor

Dr. Gunther von Hagens Sets Record Straight On 'Crucifixion TV Show' Rumor

HEIDELBERG, Germany, Sept. 22 /PRNewswire/ -- The Evening Standard, UK surely hastens the demise of journalism as the purveyor of substantiated information, when it allows reporter, Bo Wilson to declare so boldly that Channel 4 "will broadcast a documentary showing a human corpse being hung on a cross to depict Christ's suffering," and that anatomist, Dr. Gunther von Hagens "will use a real body to show how people died when crucified in the 90- minute film." (Body Worlds Creator Uses Corpse For Crucifixion, Arts & Exhibitions News, September 21.)

The Institute for Plastination receives more than fifty queries each year from documentary and filmmakers proposing interesting collaborations and forums for Dr. von Hagens to promote health education, public anatomy, and body donation. A few are in harmony with Dr. von Hagens' mission, some are reality show concepts that have only a tenuous link to his work, and still others are thinly veiled attempts to exploit and benefit from the Body Worlds phenomena and the celebrity of its colorful and controversial founder.

Though Dr. von Hagens declines to participate in nearly all the proposals sent his way, he enjoys engaging in intellectual discourse with the creative protagonists of these ventures. Such was the nature of his discussions with Nick Curwin, producer of Firefly Films and a collaborator on several previous projects.

As an anatomist inspired by the Renaissance, Dr. von Hagens is fascinated by the curious alliance between the Church and anatomists from the 1500s, and interested in expanding the boundaries of discussion about anatomy. Thus, he welcomed the lively exchange with Mr. Curwin about anatomy, anatomists, religion, death, God, and most interestingly, crucifixion's place in history and anatomy, and the crucifixion experiments of Pierre Barbet and Frederick Zugibe.

What followed was an extended hypothetical discussion about a hypothetical program showing the most common method of execution practiced by the Romans, which, according to historical records, claimed the lives of as many as 2000 people a day. While Dr. von Hagens enjoyed the sparkling dialogue and banter about the filmic possibilities of such an endeavor, he did not at any time agree to participate in staging a re-enactment of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, nor is he planning to do so in the future.

Source: Institute for Plastination

CONTACT: Gail Vida Hamburg, Director of Communications, Institute for
Plastination, Rathausstrasse 11, 69126 Heidelberg, Germany,
hd.pressoffice@plastination.com , or +1-312 602 5369

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