Scientists have revealed the face of Saint Nicholas of Myra, the real-life bishop who inspired the concept of modern-day Santa Claus. According to the New York Post, the groundbreaking reconstruction comes 1,700 years after the saint’s death and was possible by analysing data from his skull. Using advanced techniques, researchers managed to “forensically recreate” the face of Saint Nicholas of Myra, whose penchant for gift-giving prompted the legend of Father Christmas.
In the images, shared on Instagram by the study’s lead author, Cicero Moraes, the saint is depicted with a broad forehead, thin lips and a round nose. The 3D images reveal his face to be both “strong” and “gentle,” Mr Moraes said, per the outlet.
Take a look at the images below:
Saint Nicholas of Myra died in 343 AD – long before anyone could snap a photo. He was known for only rewarding well-behaved kids with gifts and inspiring the Dutch folk figure of Sinterklaas. Over time, the character merged with English Father Christmas to become the Santa Claus we know today.
Despite the saint’s popularity, there was no accurate depiction of his until now. Mr Moraes said the 3D images match the early descriptions of Santa Claus in literature, such as the 1823 poem “Twas The Night Before Christmas,” which describes his “rosy cheeks,” a “broad face” and a “nose like a cherry.”
“The skull has a very robust appearance, generating a strong face, as its dimensions on the horizontal axis are larger than average,” he said. “This characteristic, combined with a thick beard, is very reminiscent of the figure we have in mind when we think of Santa Claus,” he added.
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According to the Post, scientists used the data collected by Luigi Martino in 1950 to reconstruct the saint’s face. Studying his remains revealed that the saint suffered from chronic arthritis in his spine and pelvis and a thick skull that likely caused frequent headaches. The scientists said the saint also likely survived off a mostly plant-based diet.
“We initially reconstructed the skull in 3D using this data,” Mr Moraes said. “We supplemented this with the anatomical deformation technique, in which the tomography of a living person’s head is adjusted so that the virtual donor’s skull matches that of the saint,” he explained.
“The final face is an interpolation of all this information, seeking anatomical and statistical coherence,” Mr Moraes added.
Notably, while Saint Nicholas was initially buried in Myra, or modern-day Turkey, his bones were later moved to Bari, Italy, where they remain today.
