Saturday, I finally talked my husband in to skipping a boat ride in the gulf for a visit to the vatican exhibit in St.Pete. One of the most amazing things that I saw was an image of Christ called the Mandylion of Edessa. Here is some history on it. It really was amazing to see. It felt like you were actually looking into Christ's Eyes. I just thought it was cool. Hope you do too.





'Miraculous' image adds to mystery of how Jesus looked
Dan R. GoddardSan Antonio Express-NewsDec. 24, 2005 12:00 AM

We all recognize Jesus of Nazareth.Catholic or Protestant, Jew or Hindu, believer or not, if you grew up in the United States within the past 60 years, chances are your image of Jesus looks a lot like the long-haired, kind-eyed man gazing up to heaven in Head of Christ, a 1940 portrait by Chicago graphic artist Warner Sallman. With more than 500 million copies in circulation, Head of Christ is the most common religious image in the world. So deeply is this conception of the face of Jesus embedded in the national consciousness that few think to question its authenticity.
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But do we really know what Jesus looked like? The Bible offers scant description, even by the disciples, and for more than 300 years after Jesus' crucifixion, church authorities forbade images of him to be created, fearing that pagans would regard a depiction of Christ as an idol.Instead, symbols were used: a ship, the ark of salvation; or a cross and fish, because the letters of the Greek word for fish, ichthys, are the first letters of the Greek words meaning "Jesus Christ, Son of God, Savior."But believers, especially the common people, desired a visible image, and they pushed church authorities to come up with a portrait.Tracing the art history of the face of Christ isn't made easier by the many books and Web sites devoted to the subject. Muddled by superstition and science, the history can be traced through the legend of the Veil of Veronica, the mysteries of the Shroud of Turin and The Last Supper, by Leonardo da Vinci, whose rendering of Christ is the most imitated in the world.Add great paintings by Rembrandt and Michelangelo, countless works of religious art in churches around the world, and contemporary images of Christ in popular culture, from Jesus Christ Superstar to Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ, and you have a bewildering number of faces of Jesus - yet most look remarkably similar.Generally, we expect Jesus to have long hair parted in the middle, a full beard, a narrow, aristocratic nose, a penetrating gaze and intelligent, expressive features. Sensitive-looking and handsome, Jesus is tall, thin and fairly masculine.

Mandylion of EdessaThe face of Christ that most of us recognize probably appeared in A.D. 525, when the Mandylion of Edessa was discovered hidden in a wall of what is believed to be the first Christian city. (Edessa is now Urfa, a town in Turkey near the Syrian border.)Now on view through Jan. 8 as part of the exhibit "Saint Peter and the Vatican: The Legacy of the Popes" at San Antonio's Convention Center, the Mandylion is considered one of the five oldest images of Christ, if not the oldest. From the sixth to the early 13th century, it was considered the most famous miraculous image of Christ "not made by human hands."To modern eyes, jaded by television, movies, photography and 1,500 years of art history, the Mandylion is not too impressive. Darkened by the centuries, it is difficult to see, although you can recognize the face of Christ - thin nose, long hair, beard and dramatic eyebrows - staring back with a direct and powerful gaze.Overshadowed by many later works of art, the Mandylion remains one of the most prized relics owned by the Vatican, perhaps the inspiration for all of the images of Christ that came after. Imagine the electrifying effect it must have had in the sixth century, when, after centuries of having no official portrait of Jesus, a painting purported to be created during Christ's lifetime appeared.According to legend, Abgar, king of Edessa during the time of Christ, suffered from arthritis and leprosy. Hearing of Christ's reputation as a healer, he sent his servant and court painter, Ananias, with a letter asking Jesus to come to Edessa.When Ananias arrived in Judea, he tried to draw Jesus. Jesus called him over and gave him a letter declining Abgar's invitation but promising that the king would be cured.Then Jesus washed his face in water and wiped off the moisture with a towel, which miraculously retained his image - "Mandylion" translates as "holy towel." Ananias returned to Edessa with the image, and Abgar was healed.In the original version of the legend, Ananias painted the image. Art historians and scientific authorities who have examined the Mandylion for the Vatican concluded that it most likely is a tempera-on-linen painting of Syrian origin dating from the third century, which would make it contemporaneous with the earliest known version of the legend, written about A.D. 400.But there's much more to the Mandylion legend, and the image isn't described as "not made by human hands" until after its discovery in the sixth century.