A death erection, angel lust, rigor erectus, or terminal erection is a post-mortem erection, technically a priapism, observed in the corpses of men who have been executed, particularly by hanging.

Overview

The phenomenon has been attributed to pressure on the cerebellum created by the noose. Spinal cord injuries are known to be associated with priapism. Injuries to the cerebellum or spinal cord are often associated with priapism in living patients.

  • In The Sexuality of Christ in Renaissance Art and in Modern Oblivion, art historian and critic Leo Steinberg alleges that several Renaissance-era artists depicted Jesus Christ with an emphasis on his genitalia—including after the crucifixion with a post-mortem erection—a motif which Steinberg named ostentatio genitalium. The artwork was suppressed by the Roman Catholic Church for several centuries.
  • The "Cyclops" section of James Joyce's Ulysses makes multiple uses of the terminal erection as a motif.
  • <!-- Wikipedia is not censored; do not remove the following reliably-cited item even if you find it offensive --> In The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, Edward Gibbon relates an anecdote attributed to Abulfeda that Ali, on the death of Muhammad, exclaimed, (O prophet, thy penis is erect unto the sky). This understanding of the anecdote, however, is based on a mistranslation of the Arabic source by John Gagnier, who translated Abulfeda's Life of Muhammad into Latin. The English translation of the Arabic source should read: "In one account, ʿAlī, may God be best pleased with him, was called upon, while he was washing him [the Prophet], to raise his gaze to the sky."
  • This phenomenon is a recurring theme in the writing of William S. Burroughs, appearing in many of his books including Naked Lunch and Cities of the Red Night.

See also

  • Lazarus sign
  • Livor mortis
  • Ostentatio genitalium

References