The 14 Stations of the Cross

The Stations of the Cross by Fernando Paonessa, San Carlo al Corso, Rome
Via Crucis by Fernando Paonessa, San Carlo al Corso
The 14 Stations of the Cross are a series of images illustrating events in the Passion of Christ, from his condemnation by Pontius Pilate to his entombment.

The stations grew out of a desire to imitate the Via Dolorosa in Jerusalem, which is believed to be the actual path Jesus walked. The object of the Stations of the Cross is to help the faithful make a spiritual pilgrimage through the contemplation of the Passion of Christ. A series of fourteen numbered images is arranged along a path (or mounted on the inside walls of a church) and the faithful travel from station to station, stopping at each to say the selected prayers. This act is most commonly performed during Lent, and especially on Good Friday. 

The fourteen Stations of the Cross are:
I: Jesus is condemned to death.
II: Jesus takes up his cross.
III: Jesus falls for the first time.
V: Jesus meets his mother, Mary.
V: Simon of Cyrene is made to carry the cross.
VI: Veronica wipes the face of Jesus.
VII: Jesus falls for the second time.
8: The women of Jerusalem weep over Jesus.
IX: Jesus falls for the third time.
X: Jesus is stripped of his garments.
X1: Jesus is nailed to the cross.
XII: Jesus dies on the cross.
​XIII: Jesus is taken down from the cross.
XIV: Jesus is placed in the tomb.
XV: The Resurrection.
Although not traditionally part of the 14 Stations of the Cross, the Resurrection of Jesus is occasionally added as the 15th station. This is the case in San Carlo al Corso, which is where the above images were taken. They were commissioned for the Holy Year of 2000 and are the work of Fernando Paonessa.