In the Acts of the Apostles, Jesus is said to have manifested as a "light from heaven" that temporarily blinded the Apostle Paul, but no specific form is given.

Jun 6, 2024 · Jesus may be one of the best known and most talked-about people of ancient history. But what did Jesus look like? In the Biblical Archaeology Review article “Painting a Portrait of Jesus” (republished below), D. Moody Smith examined the …

Feb 20, 2019 · How Have Depictions of Jesus Changed Over the Centuries? The restored fresco depicting Jesus and his apostles in the Roman catacomb of Santa Domitilla. Some of the earliest known artistic...

Oct 10, 2018 · Here is a list of the six most ancient depictions of Jesus known to historians: 1. Alexamenos graffito, 1st century. This “graffito,” representing a person looking at a donkey …

A wide range of depictions have appeared over the two millennia since Jesus's death, often influenced by cultural settings, political circumstances and theological contexts. Many depictions are interpretations of spurious sources, and are generally historically inaccurate.

Dec 24, 2023 · Throughout history, Western art has often shown Jesus with pale skin, long, brown hair, and a beard. In some instances, as seen in Warner Sallman's "Head of Christ," Jesus is even depicted with blonde hair and blue eyes. Yet, these portrayals have evolved over time.

Artists took the most notable characteristics of divinity from the Greco-Roman world and combined them into an image of a roughly 30-year-old man—devising the image recognizable as Jesus today: the slender, pale, bearded, long-haired Jesus.

May 29, 2024 · The famous depiction of Jesus as a fair-skinned man with long, wavy brown hair, a beard and light-colored eyes, wearing a flowing robe, is deeply rooted in Western artistic traditions.

The earliest known surviving depiction of Jesus Christ as Pantocrator (literally ruler of all), it is regarded by historians and scholars among the most important and recognizable works in the study of Byzantine art as well as Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Catholic Christianity.

From ancient Christian mosaics in Roman catacombs to modern digital art, the portrayal of Jesus has constantly evolved. These depictions don’t just show how artists saw Him—they reveal how people in different eras understood His message, His teachings, and His role in their lives.