The Face on the Shroud of Turin

By Iñaki Gonzalo

We are publishing in this document the small project we have undertaken with the aim of obtaining a “photographic development” of the face of Our Lord Jesus Christ as it appears imprinted on the Shroud of Turin. The images presented below are therefore real images of the face of Christ, which we have generated using the GIMP image editor and the G'MIC filters.

The face on the Shroud of Turin alongside a very conservative reconstruction of it.

GOALS

• Our primary goal has been to obtain a high-quality photographic positive of the face of Christ from the image imprinted on the Shroud. We have sought to achieve a true “photographic development” through the digital processing of the image, minimizing as much as possible the artistic component dependent on the author's interpretation.
• Once a true positive “photograph” of the Shroud was obtained, we proceeded with the necessary minimal retouching to approximate the natural face of Christ prior to the torments of the Passion.

RESULTS

• The Original Face
  The results we have achieved are images like this one, which highlights the amazing photographic nature of the image of the Shroud and reveals in a straightforward way and without any artistic retouching the face of Christ as imprinted on it.

  We note however, that while the image of the Shroud behaves like a photographic negative and as such we are considering it in this work, the features of the image totally rule out it being a true photograph (1).

• The Restored Face
  The obtained result reveals a countenance that closely resembles the traditional image we have of Jesus. Nevertheless, it presents a noticeable asymmetry stemming from the enormous asymmetry of the original face, severely distorted by the tortures of the Passion. The step-by-step process leading to this outcome can be followed in the development.

DEVELOPMENT

For the digital processing of the images we have used the GIMP editor and the G'MIC filters.
We have divided the original and generated images into three groups:

• Group A - Originals
  Original starting photographs.
• Group B - The Face on the Shroud or Turin
  We describe the procedure we followed to obtain a color photographic positive.
• Group C - The Restored Face
  We reduced the bumps, bruises and swellings in an attempt to approach the real face of Christ.

You can click on all the images to download them in much higher resolution, except for the two original ones due to licensing reasons. They are exported in JPEG format with the maximum quality level and the original source size, ensuring a very high degree of detail.

In addition to the original version, some images may feature an alternative version resulting from applying the Simulate Film filter: Polaroid Polachrome by G'MIC, for enhanced photographic realism.

Group A - Originals

Original starting images on which we are going to work. They were downloaded from the website www.shroudphotos.com, which makes available to the public the photographs that Vernon Miller obtained in 1978 with the STURP project.

A1 Original photograph of the Shroud obtained by Vernon Miller in 1978 (cropping of the face).

A2 Fluorescent light photograph that allows us to visualise the bloodstains (red) surrounded by serum halos at their edges. As it dries, the blood retracts leaving a rim of serum transparent to the naked eye but visible under ultraviolet light (blood serum fluoresces under ultraviolet light).

Group B - The Face on the Shroud or Turin

We proceed to obtain the color positive of the face of Our Lord Jesus Christ printed on the Holy Shroud. The original image remains unaltered.

B1 We subject the original A1 image to the “High Pass” filter to enhance the details.

B2We invert the High Pass B1 image to obtain the positive, since the image of the Shroud behaves like a negative. We make adjustments of levels, tone, etc. to highlight the face.

B3 We desaturate the B2 image, readjust levels, and apply it in “Linear light” mode on the High Pass B1 image.

B4 We apply the “G'MIC Smooth Diffusion” filter to the desaturated B2 image that we are applying in “Linear light” mode. We increase the shadows by 40%.

B5A We apply color to B4 in “Soft light” mode with transparency. The color applied is uniform to preserve the details of the face as they appear on the Shroud. We also use “Soft light” mode instead of a mode like “LCh color” to preserve the original color variation.

B5B We apply the “G'MIC Iain Remove Pattern” filter to B5A to remove the diagonal parallel ribs of the fabric.

B5C We apply the “G'MIC Smooth Diffusion” filter to B5B to smooth the image. We adjust the transparency of the smoothed layer to keep the details of B5B in focus. We can clearly appreciate that the image registered on this 2000-year-old cloth is a photograph. It is therefore the most important photograph in history: the Face of the Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ.

(Image applying the “G'MIC Simulate Film” filter: B5C_Polaroid).

B5D We apply uniform color to the bruises of B5C and reduce the luminosity of the beard and mustache a little. To slightly highlight the presence of blood, we apply in “Pin light” mode with transparency the A2 fluorescent light photograph (edited by removing a certain range of colors).

(Image applying the “G'MIC Simulate Film” filter: B5D_Polaroid).

B5E We show in greater detail the presence of blood on the face of Christ. We make use of the edited A2 fluorescent light photograph, but now we add it in “Burn” and “Multiply” modes with a lot of transparency so as not to obscure the details of the face. We adjust levels, opacity, tone, luminosity, etc.

(Image applying the “G'MIC Simulate Film” filter: B5E_Polaroid).

Group C - The Restored Face

We attempt to reduce the bumps, swellings and bruises to try to approach the face of Christ prior to the torture He endured. It can be visualized as a sequence of successive frames, starting from the initial image C1 and progressing through the restoration process until we reach the final image C4A / C4B.

C1 Level 1 of restoration. We start from the original face B5C printed on the Shroud. We smooth and enhance it using resources generated in a previous project, which we overlay and edit so that they fit exactly onto the original. We work with a transparency mask to highlight only certain areas without altering the original image. The process has provided a slight frontal lighting to the face.

We have to make adjustments to the nose (which appears fractured and displaced), cheekbones, eyebrows, and eyes because they are very swollen. The right side (image) of the face is badly injured and needs repair.

C2 Level 2 of restoration. We do repairs on the nose and eyebrow areas.

C3 Level 3 of restoration. As mentioned above, the right side of the face is severely damaged, causing a very asymmetrical appearance. Using a horizontally flipped image, we overlay certain areas of the left side (using a transparency mask) onto the right side and vice versa. We also make corrections to the cheekbones and reduce some of the bruising.

C4A Level 4 of restoration. We make some minor retouching to the eyes and colour adjustments.

(Image applying the “G'MIC Simulate Film” filter: C4A_Polaroid).

C4B We reflect image C4A horizontally. As we have seen, this image is not our interpretation of the face on the Shroud, nor was it available to us a priori: it is the final result we have arrived at after our small attempt at restoration. It is far from being a complete restoration as the face is still very damaged, but having taken small and relatively safe steps, we can be confident that we have not strayed too far from the real face of Christ.

We have carried out several restoration trials, and the final result is always the same: starting from the B5C face printed on the Shroud, it can be verified that we end up with a face very close to our final result.

(Image applying the “G'MIC Simulate Film” filter: C4B_Polaroid).

We conclude by comparing the broken face of Christ as it appears on the Shroud with the restored face we have obtained. It allows us to see how far God was willing to go to bring about the redemption of man. In the Shroud we can see with our own eyes the fulfilment of the work of salvation, and thus of the entire Sacred Scripture.

For God so loved the world that He gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.
(John 3,16)

See, my servant shall prosper; He shall be exalted and lifted up, and shall be very high; Just as there were many who were astonished at him —so marred was his appearance, beyond human semblance, and his form beyond that of mortals— so He shall startle many nations.
(Isaiah 52,13)

The Real Face of Jesus

(March 2024 Update)

We have added to the website a second part where we publish new images and a viewer that allows you to follow frame by frame the entire restoration process. You can access by clicking on the image or the following link: “The Real Face of Jesus”.

LDVM

Original images on archive.org

Published by Iñaki Gonzalo | February 2023

(1) Is the Shroud of Turin a Medieval Photograph? Barrie Schwortz.

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