The Apostolic Age · AD 4–70
Alexander, son of Simon of Cyrene
fl. c. 30–60 (death unrecorded) · Son of the cross-bearer · Cyrene → Rome(?)
The Apostolic Age
Who Alexander, son of Simon of Cyrene was
Named with his brother Rufus in Mark’s aside identifying Simon of Cyrene — a note useless to readers unless both sons were known in the church for which Mark wrote. An ossuary found in the Kidron Valley in 1941, inscribed “Alexander son of Simon” in a Cyrenian family tomb, may — the identification is possible, not provable — be the very man. His brother has his own card; per the granularity axiom, so now does he.
Mark 15:21 only within the horizon (the Kidron ossuary is archaeology, not literature).
Common questions
When was Alexander, son active?
Alexander, son of Simon of Cyrene is dated fl. c. 30–60 (death unrecorded) in the archive, which places Alexander, son in the Apostolic Age (AD 4–70). The dating is traditional and approximate; the archive marks it as uncertain rather than fixing a year the sources do not give.
Which early sources mention Alexander, son?
Alexander, son of Simon of Cyrene is named in 1 primary-source passage catalogued here, drawn from Mark. Every passage is quoted from a named public-domain translation, earliest first.
Where was Alexander, son from?
The archive associates Alexander, son of Simon of Cyrene with Cyrene, Rome(?). The sources record more than one location, so the places are listed in the order the record moves through them.
Who were Alexander, son’s contemporaries?
The archive links Alexander, son of Simon of Cyrene to 3 other figures, including Simon of Cyrene, Rufus of Rome and The Mother of Rufus. Each connection is drawn from a source that places them together, not from inference.
Scripture record
Primary-source mentions (1)
Every passage below is quoted from a named public-domain translation, earliest first.
Mark 15:21
c. AD 70And they compel one Simon a Cyrenian… the father of Alexander and Rufus, to bear his cross.Mark · read ↗
Connected in the archive
People
Events in this lifetime
- AD 30 · Crucifixion, Resurrection and Pentecost, AD 30–33
- AD 44 · Persecution under Herod Agrippa I, AD 44
- AD 49 · The Council of Jerusalem, AD 49
- AD 57 · Paul writes Romans, AD 57
- AD 62 · James the Just stoned, AD 62
Place
Places served
The 2 places the sources put Alexander, son, in the order the record moves through them. This is what the sources attest, not a reconstructed route.