Article as published on San Francisco Chronicle.
A scientific representation of Jesus' appearance that appeared in popular mechanics over a decade ago resurfaced today in social media as a political statement.
Many are saying the depiction of a dark-haired, tan-skinned man is fitting at time when Americans are debating whether to allow Syrian refugees into the country.
"Would Donald Trump let this man into the US? Would you?" asks one Facebook commenter.
When this image was first released in 2002, it challenged historical depictions of Jesus Christ as a tall, lean, pasty guy with effeminate facial features and long, flowing light-brown hair. Famous paintings of him — mainly done by Italian artists — show someone of European decent who probably could have rocked a pair of skinny jeans and a man bun.
But scientists working in the field of forensic anthropology determined that the son of God probably had a manly face with a tan complexion, bushy eyebrows and short, dark hair, according to popular mechanics. He didn't look anything like the person many of us remember from Sunday School lessons.
The team of British scientists and Israeli archeologists used the same techniques employed by detectives solving crimes to create the computer-generated image. They delved "into cultural and archeological data" and the world of "physical and biological sciences" to identify the appearance of a typical Middle Eastern Jewish man living in the Galilee area of northern Israel at the time of Jesus.
The effort was led by medical artist Richard Neave, who has created depictions of dozens of famous historical faces.
"If anyone could create an accurate portrait of Jesus, it would be Neave," popular mechanics reported.
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