On the head of Jesus they placed a crown of thorns
The word for thorns is
akantha {ak'-an-thah} (Here, in the context, it's akanthone)
Dr. Barbet write in his book, A Doctor at Calvary, a description of the crowning:
"St. Vincent of Lerins (Sermo in Parasceve) was to write at a later date ... "They placed in His head a crown of thorns; it was, in fact, in the shape of a pileus, so that it touched and covered His head in every part..." . The pileus, among the Romans, was a sort of semi-oval head-dress made of felt, which enveloped the head and was specially worn during work ... ." (Barbet, pg. 85)
"St. Vincent of Lerins (Sermo in Parasceve) was to write at a later date ... "They placed in His head a crown of thorns; it was, in fact, in the shape of a pileus, so that it touched and covered His head in every part..." . The pileus, among the Romans, was a sort of semi-oval head-dress made of felt, which enveloped the head and was specially worn during work ... ." (Barbet, pg. 85)
Unlike the paintings of the windig of thorns, this "corwn would have been a sort of thorny helmet which would have covered the entire scalp and brow.
He goes on to say: "It is generally admitted that they [the thorns] belong to a thorn-bearing tree which is common in Judea, the Zizyphus spina Christi, a kind of lote-tree. It is probable that there was a heap of its branches in the praetorium, used for firing by the Roman cohort. Its thorns are very long and sharp."
I have seen the thorns of the lote tree, which are at least three quarters of an inch long.
Part of the love shown to us is displayed through akantha.
