Computer generated image of body in the shroud. History Channel
On Tuesday, March 30, 2010, a program was aired on the History Channel that created a buzz throughout the religious and scientific community. The two hour program was called the “The Real Face of Jesus”. The program utilized the latest in scientific analysis and 3-D software to recreate the face of the individual believed buried in the Shroud of Turin.
The Shroud of Turin is arguably the closest Christians have come to seeing the face of Jesus Christ. Although the shroud has been discredited by many researchers as being a fake, there are still many believers who consider it to be the genuine burial cloth of the son of God. Whether the shroud is a fake or not, believers and nonbelievers should find it fascinating to see what this face looks like.
As background, the Shroud of Turin dates back to at least the 1350’s when it appeared in Lirey, France. The 14ft shroud depicts an image of a man who appears to be have been crucified. Radio carbon dating in 1988 concluded that the shroud was manufactured sometime between 1260 and 1390. However, controversy remains on the accuracy of these tests. The shroud truly depicting the face of Jesus Christ is still up for debate, but one thing is certain – the Shroud of Turin is the single most studied artifact in the history of mankind.
At the forefront of putting a face to the shroud is Ray Downing, a Digital Illustrator with Studio MacBeth. He wants to prove that the Shroud of Turin is not just a face painted on a cloth with red ochre pigment. According to Downing, the details of the impression are just too extensive. The shroud would have had to have been physically draped over a person to obtain the level of detail that is visible to the naked eye and through other imagery.
3D Profile of the face in the shroud. History Channel
The genesis of this project began when Downing worked on a 3D image of Abraham Lincoln, which was part of another show aired on the History Channel. Downing and his fellow researchers were able to recreate a life like image and death mask of President Abraham Lincoln by exporting over 1oo photographs of Lincoln into his 3D software. The program was an immediate success.
Expanding on the Lincoln project, Downing used detailed imagery of the Shroud and converted these images from a 2D perspective to a 3D format utilizing the latest technological software available. The software was able to accurately remove any distortion of the facial imprint as it laid over the body. Downing concludes the results are the most realistic depiction of what many consider to be Jesus Christ.
This breakthrough does nothing to change the polarizing debate on the authenticity of the Shroud of Turin, but it certainly puts this age old debate back into the headlines. The technology can be applauded by all, and putting a face to the shroud, can be considered interesting even to the most vocal deniers.
See also:
The Real Face of Jesus?: History.com
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I also enjoyed watching the “Shroud” special on the History Channel this week. As I watched, I couldn’t help but think that it doesn’t matter ( to me) if the artifact is the cloth from 33 AD or not. The face which was reproduced (with stunning technology) was of a man who was crucified and tortured, as was clear from the blood markings. Although we will never know his true identity, he was a real person, and over the centuries, his likeness has served to represent the face of true peace. Happy Easter!