# Picture of Jesus - did someone pose for it? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 13, 2001, 12:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/picture-of-jesus-did-someone-pose-for-it/87244 "2001-10-13T12:41:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Tiburon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e36b37/32.png) [@Tiburon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tiburon)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2001, 12:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/picture-of-jesus-did-someone-pose-for-it/87244/1 "2001-10-13T12:41:37Z")
I was in a bookstore the other day with my girlfriend and I saw a little frame with the classic picture of Jesus in it. It is the picture where a semi-profile is shown, Jesus is white, longish, wavy hair in back, mustache, etc. It’s the picture that it often in frames, in homes, etc. My question is this - who is the artist and did someone pose for it? Also, how long has this picture been around? I’d prefer not to get into the whole question of what Jesus looks like - let’s face it, that won’t get resolved here. Just curious about this particular picture. I’ll keep poking around online for a link to the exact picture. Tibs. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2001, 1:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/picture-of-jesus-did-someone-pose-for-it/87244/2 "2001-10-13T13:00:14Z")
There have been thousands of paintings depicting Jesus, so we can’t really guess the specific artist you mean. Some of the painters in question used images of Jesus that they already had in their heads, but most have used various male models, few of whom are famous. ---
**Author:** ![lawoot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/35a633/32.png) [@lawoot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lawoot)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2001, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/picture-of-jesus-did-someone-pose-for-it/87244/3 "2001-10-13T15:56:17Z")
I’m reminded of an old _Second City_ sketch, where God and Jesus are discussing his upcoming ‘mission’ to Earth: **God:** Most artists will paint you to look like a gay Norwegian. **Jesus:** What will I really look like? **God:** Frank Zappa. ---
**Author:** ![Mystery\_Dog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f14d63/32.png) [@Mystery\_Dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mystery_Dog)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2001, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/picture-of-jesus-did-someone-pose-for-it/87244/4 "2001-10-13T16:25:59Z")
Is [this](http://www.warnersallman.org/) the painting you had in mind? If so, it’s Head of Christ by Warner Sallman (1897-1968). It’s probably the best-known modern painting of Christ. According to The People’s Almanac Presents The 20th Century, Sallman painted it in 1924. Nobody posed for it. Sallman woke up in the middle of the night with that image in mind, after a frustrating day of trying to come up with a depiction of Christ for a magazine illustration. Hmmm. Double-checking myself, I realized that the website says it was painted in 1941, not 1924. I don’t know which to believe. But is that the picture you had in mind? ---
**Author:** ![Duck\_Duck\_Goose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/50afbb/32.png) [@Duck\_Duck\_Goose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duck_Duck_Goose)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2001, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/picture-of-jesus-did-someone-pose-for-it/87244/5 "2001-10-13T17:02:20Z")
Eh, I don’t see where the website says it was painted in 1941. It says that in 1941 someone formed a company to publish his art. However, I’m running across other websites that give both 1940 and 1941 as the date. Looks like [this](http://www.angelfire.com/al/CROSSEXAMINATION/sallman.html) may be the source of the 1924 date. > [@](#): > > In 1924, Sallman was commissioned to design the cover page of a demoninational magazine. On the eve of his deadline, still unsatisfied with his work, a picture appeared vividly within his mind’s eye, and Sallman created a charcoal drawing of the “Head Of Christ.” Later in 1940, he reproduced that painting in oils, which has since sold millions. [This](http://www.yale.edu/yup/books/063423.htm) says it was painted in 1940. So does [this one.](http://www.umcom.org/transmitter/oct2000/) And to address the OP, this website also says: > [@](#): > > To charges that “Head of Christ” was based on an earlier work by French artist Léon Lhermitte, Warner Sallman’s son James recalls his father’s account of waking in the middle of the night with a vision of the finished portrait: “Having seen this vision, he got up went up to his studio and quickly drew a pencil sketch ,” which later became the finished “Head of Christ.” > > However, Warner Sallman himself conceded at one point that Lhermitte’s work could have influenced his. After all, he asked, “Isn’t everything we create a composite of what we have subconsciously stored through the years?” And God **bless** the Internet. Google, “Leon Lhermitte Jesus”. The actual Lhermitte painting in question. > **[Matthew 5:38-48](https://www.beliefnet.com/faiths/christianity/bible-verse/matthew/5/daily-bible-reading-april-27-2002.aspx)** > > You have heard that it was said, 'An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.' But I say to you, Do not resist one who is evil. But if any one strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also; and if any one would sue you and take your... > [@](#): > > Friend of the Humble > Leon Augustin Lhermitte, 1892 Um, IANA art critic, but I don’t think “influenced” is the right word here. I think it’s more like “copied”. 😃 Sorry, James. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Gregor\_Samsa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a6a055/32.png) [@Gregor\_Samsa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gregor_Samsa)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2001, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/picture-of-jesus-did-someone-pose-for-it/87244/6 "2001-10-13T17:06:44Z")
About 2/3 of the way down [this page](http://www.vatican.va/jubilee_2000/magazine/documents/ju_mag_01121997_p-67_en.html), on the Vatican’s site (vatican.va), there’s a very brief synopsis on how the modern image of Jesus evolved. It’s the section entitled _The Portrait of Jesus_. I’m sure there are better, more complete descriptions out there, but hopefully this is a start. ---
**Author:** ![Mystery\_Dog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f14d63/32.png) [@Mystery\_Dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mystery_Dog)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2001, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/picture-of-jesus-did-someone-pose-for-it/87244/7 "2001-10-13T17:34:22Z")
After reading DDG’s post, I went back to the book I cited above, and read more carefully this time. DDG is right. The similar charcoal work was done in 1924, and Head of Christ in 1940. ---
**Author:** ![Mystery\_Dog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f14d63/32.png) [@Mystery\_Dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mystery_Dog)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2001, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/picture-of-jesus-did-someone-pose-for-it/87244/8 "2001-10-13T17:40:06Z")
After reading DDG’s post, I went back to the book I cited above, and read more carefully this time. DDG is right. The similar charcoal work was done in 1924, and Head of Christ in 1940. ---
**Author:** ![Tiburon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e36b37/32.png) [@Tiburon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tiburon)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2001, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/picture-of-jesus-did-someone-pose-for-it/87244/9 "2001-10-13T18:05:18Z")
Setec, Yup, that is the exact picture I had in mind. Thank you for finding a picture! DDG, Whoa…I’m inclined to agree with you that the picture was copied. I opened both up in different windows and put them side by side. Great find! Pipeliner, Thanks for the lead! Headed there now. Tibs. ---
**Author:** ![dqa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dqa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dqa)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2001, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/picture-of-jesus-did-someone-pose-for-it/87244/10 "2001-10-13T21:03:26Z")
A few months back, I saw a documentary about depictions of Jesus, and the politics of those who commissioned them. I recall that one group was rather unhappy with the Sallman image, believing that it looked too feminine. Tried to find said documentary, and the best I could come up with was [The Face: Jesus in Art](http://www.thefaceonline.org/). Doesn’t sound like the one I recall. Interestingly, when I entered “jesus painting feminine” into Google, I got a different controversy about a feminine Jesus: [National Catholic Reporter _Jesus 2000_](http://www.natcath.com/public/Jesusat2000.htm). ---
**Author:** ![Tiburon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e36b37/32.png) [@Tiburon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tiburon)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2001, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/picture-of-jesus-did-someone-pose-for-it/87244/11 "2001-10-13T22:08:13Z")
NCR is a pretty neat publication - they are pretty liberal. I have a good friend on staff there. I think it’s pretty cool they didn’t pick a conventional pic. Tibs. ---
**Author:** ![DocCathode](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doccathode/32/18773_2.png) [@DocCathode](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DocCathode)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2001, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/picture-of-jesus-did-someone-pose-for-it/87244/12 "2001-10-14T14:23:09Z")
Slight hijack- I applaud NCR’s choice, but I am curious about NCR. Is it regarded by many Catholics as properly represntative of them? Or, does it speak only for a small number of people? Some artists prefer a live model. Some work from a purely mental image. ``` The film The Favor, The Watch, And The Very Big Fish tells the story of a man (Jeff Goldblum) who is chosen to portray Jesus in a series of Biblical photographs, and how his life is changed. I recommend it. Has any model or actor ended up typecast as Jesus? ```