Crucifixion by Frank Roper (1974)

Frank Roper’s aluminium Crucifixion, suspended above the nave altar in Peterborough Cathedral, is a striking example of mid-20th-century ecclesiastical art. Cast using Roper’s innovative lost-polystyrene technique, the figure of Christ is rendered with a stark, elongated form that blends modernist abstraction with spiritual gravitas. The light-catching metal surface and open, almost skeletal structure give the work a sense of weightlessness, allowing it to appear as though floating in the vast space of the cathedral. Installed as part of post-war reordering, it provides a bold visual focus for worship and a distinctive contrast to the medieval stonework surrounding it.