What Famous Figures In History Really Looked Like
We think we know what certain historical figures look like. Their faces show up on monuments, on our currency, on television, and in cartoons. The truth about what these people actually looked like might surprise you, though. Our ideas of what people like George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, King Tut, and Nero look like are mostly based on artists' renditions.
Thanks to modern technology, we've been able to find out what these people actually looked like. Keep reading to have your mind blown.
Roman Emperor Julius Caesar
The story of Julius Caesar has been documented in history books, poetry, and even a Shakespeare play. This man was a Roman war general who was able to defeat Pompey and expand the Roman empire. Caesar was the first Roman general to cross the English Channel and invade Britain.
You may have seen sculptures of Caesar's head like the one pictured above. In these sculptures, Caesar appears as a chiseled and virile specimen. He kind of looks like a Hollywood actor from the 1940s (if that actor were made out of stone).
This Is How Julius Caesar Actually Looked
Using 3D scans of marble portraits, artists at The National Museum of Antiquities in Leiden were able to create this lifelike reconstruction of what Julius Caesar actually looked like.
This version of Caesar doesn't look quite as impressive as those marble busts. Even though Caesar's eyes were close together and he had salt and pepper hair, he was an extremely powerful dictator. Eventually, members of the senate became displeased by Caesar's politics, so they assassinated him on the Ides of March, 44 B.C.
Images Of King Tut
Another famous Egyptian ruler is King Tutankhamun. He was an Egyptian pharaoh who reigned from 1332 to 1323 BC during Egypt's New Kingdom era. King Tut (as he is known) was one of the youngest rulers of Egypt. He rose to the throne when he was just ten years old.
In 1922, British archaeologist Howard Carter discovered King Tut's tomb. His coffin had been sealed for more than 3,200 years. Tut only reigned for ten years. He was 20 years old when he died.
This Is How King Tut Actually Looked
Scientists were able to exhume the mummified body of King Tut and perform a variety of tests on it. DNA studies of Tut's body indicate that he had a number of health problems including malaria. He also had a broken leg that was infected at the time of his death.
He also appears to have had a club foot as well as deformations resulting from inbreeding. His mother and father were brother and sister. Tut is the only Pharoah who is depicted sitting down in traditional Egyptian art, and now we know why.
What We Think Emperor Nero Looked Like
This is a sculpture of Nero who became the last Roman emperor of the Juilo-Claudian dynasty. Nero was just 17-years-old at the time. Nero wasn't a particularly kind ruler. He had his own mother murdered for being too overbearing. Nero was also an actor, poet, musician, and charioteer in addition to being a dictator.
The people of Rome didn't particularly like Nero. They thought his fondness for the arts undermined his authority as a leader.
The Real Nero
In 2019, Spanish artists created a lifelike rendering of Nero based on busts, drawings, and descriptions of the emperor. The unsettling image got Nero's attributes down to a tee, from his chinstrap to his arrogant smirk. Now it's not hard to see why many people hated this guy, aside from the fact that he was a murderous dictator.
In 64 A.D. a fire broke out and consumed the city of Rome, but Nero reacted by dressing up and singing from the roof of his palace. Before he could be executed, Nero took his own life saying, "What an artist dies in me!"
What We Think Nefertiti Looked Like
Nefertiti was the Great Royal Wife of Akhenaten. The Egyptian Queen's bust, made of limestone and covered in stucco, was discovered in 1912 in Thutmose's workshop. Thutmose is the sculptor who is believed to have created the bust in 1345 B.C. in Amarna, Egypt.
Nefertiti and the pharaoh Akhenaten were known for the religious revolution in Egypt, worshipping just one god, Aten, the sun disc. Based on the sculpture, Nefertiti was obviously beautiful with defined facial features. But with 3D imaging technology, experts were able to determine what Nefertiti may have looked like in person.
The Real Nefertiti
In 2018, Travel Channel's Expedition Unknown used 3D imaging technology to scan and digitally map the facial structure of a mummy known as "The Younger Lady." While "The Younger Lady" is believed to be Nefertiti, the mummy's true identity is still hotly debated.
After the mummy's face was scanned, paleoartist Elisabeth Daynes took 500 hours to recreate the face on the bust based on historical images of Nefertiti. This project seemed to prove that "The Younger Lady" was indeed Nefertiti. Upon its release, the image caused much controversy over the supposed color of Nefertiti's skin.
The One And Only Bard, William Shakespeare
This is how we're used to imagining William Shakespeare. He's always depicted wearing a frilly collar. Most portraits we have of Shakespeare aren't accurate representations of what the man himself actually looked like. Most experts do agree that Shakespeare did have some facial hair and a receding hairline.
In 1775, Professor Hildegard Hammerschmidt-Hummel discovered William Shakespeare's death mask in London. Keep reading to see what that death mask, which is a plaster mold of dead Shakespeare's face, actually looked like.
The Real Face Of William Shakespeare
We can't be sure if the death mask that supposedly belongs to William Shakespeare is actually his, but in 2010, Dr. Carolin Wilkinson of Dundee University analyzed Shakespeare's alleged death mask to create a rendering of what his face really looked like. The rendering of Shakespeare'sface pictured above was created using that death mask and 3D imaging technology.
This version of Shakespeare has a forehead that isn't quite as exaggerated. He also appears to have a shorter face.
Robert The Bruce As He's Portrayed In Art
Robert the Bruce, otherwise known as Robert I, was King of Scots from 1306 to 1329. Robert I is best remembered for securing Scotland's independence from England after waging a guerrilla war against the English. After he defeated Edward II in the Battle of Bannockburn in June 1314, Edward still refused to give up his overlordship of Scotland.
This prompted the Scottish earls, barons, and the community to pen a letter to Pope John XXII claiming Robert I as the rightful monarch. There are no contemporary works or art depicting Robert the Bruce, but researchers at the University of Glasgow decided to find out what he really looked like.
The Real Robert The Bruce
Using casts from what is believed to be Robert the Bruce's skull, researchers at the University of Glasgow determined what this Scottish king looked like in person. In the past, artists simply used their imaginations and word of mouth to create portraits and statues of Robert.
Using Face Lab technology, researchers used legal and archaeological evidence to create his likeness. In 1324, the Pope recognized Robert the Bruce as the rightful king of independent Scotland but he died five years later. He was buried at Dunfermine Abbey and his heart was interred at Melrose Abbey.
Recreating A Face Lost To History: An Ancient Druid Woman Who Died 2,000 Years Ago
What is a druid? The word was commonly used in the ancient Celtic language. It typically referred to a person involved in religion or magic, such as someone who communicated with gods and goddesses or who was able to predict the future.
Because the term is so general, experts have had a rough time pinpointing exactly what the druids were. But thanks to modern technology and a student at the University of Dundee, we now have an idea of what a female druid could have looked like, based on a skull that was donated to the Edinburgh Phrenological Society 200 years ago.
George Washington In His Portrait
We all know George Washington as the very first President of the United States from 1789 to 1797. After leading Patriot forces to victory during the War for Independence, Washington presided over the 1787 Constitutional Convention and helped establish a new federal government.
The Founding Father is a highly revered figure in United States history and now we see his face everywhere. He is on the dollar bill, the quarter, and his portrait is hung up in many government buildings and museums across the nation. We're all familiar with his face but what it actually looked like didn't come to light until recently.
The Real George Washington
Researchers compared detailed renderings to painted portraits to create this computer-generated image of Washington to prove that most of his portraits are pretty authentic.
What makes this image so realistic is Washington's five o'clock shadow and his full head of hair – all of which was real and powdered white in his day. Washington died on December 14, 1799, after complications with a sore throat. He was 67 years old.
Queen Elizabeth I In Her Portrait
Queen Elizabeth I reigned over England and Ireland from 1558 to 1603. She was the daughter of King Henry VIII and his second wife Anne Boleyn but because that marriage was annulled upon her death, Elizabeth was considered illegitimate. As a result, it took a few years for her to ascend the throne but it eventually happened in 1558.
Elizabeth relied on her trusted advisers led by William Cecil and established the English Protestant Church. There are numerous paintings that depict what this monarch looked like but in 2018, mixed media artist Mat Collishaw took things to the next level.
The Real Face Of Queen Elizabeth I
Collishaw created a hyper-realistic animatronic mask of Queen Elizabeth I that literally follows you around with her eyes and opens her mouth as if to speak. The mask is attached to a mirror and sits across the Armada Portrait on display at the Queen's House. While the famous Armada portrait depicts a youthful Elizabeth, she was actually 55 when it was painted in 1588 and Collishaw's mask shows a more accurate vision of what she might've looked like at the time.
The Virgin Queen ultimately reigned for 44 years until her death on March 24, 1603 at Richmond Palace.
Jesus Christ In Art
We're sure you have at least a clue about who Jesus Christ is: the biblical figure that walked on water, rose from the dead three days later, turned water to wine, and healed the blind.
He gave up his life for the better good by getting crucified on a cross. There are a few renditions of what he looked like, and it would appear that artists didn't capture his true essence.
What Jesus Really Looked Like
The Bible doesn't describe Jesus' physical appearance and much modern evidence indicates that he looked nothing like the way he's been portrayed over the centuries.
And without skeleton remains or other body parts that might have Jesus' DNA, researchers had to rely on forensic anthropology. A team of British scientists and Israeli archeologists used the same methods that are commonly used to solve crimes when they created this image. Is this what Jesus really looked like?
What We Think Cleopatra Looks Like
You probably think that Cleopatra, the once ruler of Egypt looks like this bust pictured above, or like Elizabeth Taylor with some very intense eyeliner. Cleopatra was the queen of Egypt for close to 30 years. She began her reign when she was just 18 years old.
Cleopatra had a son who is believed to be Caesar's child. After Caesar was murdered and Cleopatra's brother Ptolemy XIV died, Cleopatra was left to rule Egypt with her son by her side.
The Truth About Cleopatra's Appearance
Cleopatra's distinctive profile may come as a surprise to people who imagined this Egyptian queen as a gorgeous starlet. Cleo had brains in that head of hers, though. She was well educated and she could speak multiple languages.
This composite of what Cleopatra probably looked like was created using digital 3D technology alongside existing portraiture and sculptures. Many sources claim that Cleopatra had quite masculine features. We may never know what she actually looked like, but this 3D rendition gives us a pretty good idea.
Maximilien Robespierre In Portraits
Maximilien Robespierre was a French lawyer and prominent politician during the French Revolution. He was an outspoken advocate for universal manhood suffrage, the abolition of celibacy, religious tolerance, and the abolition of slavery in the French colonies.
Robespierre was integral during the Storming of the Tuileries, which helped establish the First French Republic in 1792 before the execution of Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI. He was thusly elected as deputy to the National Convention but is best known as a central figure during France's "Reign of Terror." Thanks to modern technology, researchers have been able to determine what Robespierre actually looked like.
The Actual Maximilien Robespierre
This was the supposed face of France's "Reign of Terror." In 2013, forensic pathologist Philippe Charlier teamed up with facial reconstruction specialist Philippe Froesch, to create a rendering of the French Revolution poster boy's face.
In addition to contemporary artwork of Robespierre (which was made to flatter him), Charlier and Froesch used Robespierre's death mask which was said to be made by the actual Madame Tussaud. Tussaud made the mask with Robespierre's severed head. He was executed July 28, 1794, a year after he became a member of the powerful Committee of Public Safety.
Meet Hilda
Meet "Hilda." Experts believe she might have been more than 60 years old when she died during the Iron Age (sometime between 55BC and AD400). This was double the life expectancy of humans at the time.
Karen Fleming, a forensic student at the University of Dundee, recreated the woman's characteristics by scanning her skull and then adding wax "muscles" and "skin" to the 3D replica. "Hilda was a fascinating character to recreate," Fleming said in a statement. "It's clear from the skull she was toothless before she died, which isn't too surprising considering the diet of folk back then but it was impressive how long she lived.
Mary, Queen of Scots In Her Portrait
She was known as Mary, Queen of Scots but her real name was Mary Stuart. She was the queen of Scotland between 1542-1567. Sadly, her father passed away right after she was born and due to that she became the queen six days after birth.
Her mother would send her off to France so she could grow up in the French court before returning to Scotland in 1559. Does this painting really show how she looked all those years ago?
What The Queen Of Scots Actually Looked Like
Professor Caroline Wilkinson of Dundee University used paintings and drawings to re-create a 3-D face of the Queen of Scots. Wilkinson also had to draw upon biographical info in order to bypass the highly stylized depictions of her artwork.
This rendering of her isn't too far off from how she looks in her classic paintings but you can clearly tell the difference. The feature of her that stayed closest to the original is her nose.
Richard III In Art
For two years, Richard III was the king of England (1483-1485). As history has gone by, the reputation of Richard III has been considered less than honorable. Richard was labeled as a tyrant in Shakespeare's play that involved him. He was eventually replaced by the Tudors.
During the battle of Bosworth Field in 1485, Richard III boldly led a charge into the heart of Henry Tudor's army. The defeat of his clan quickly followed that move!
What Richard III Actually Looked Like
It wasn't possible to recreate what Richard III might have looked like until 2012. That's because his body was lost to history soon after he passed away. In 2012, a research team looked through some clues that brought them to a parking lot.
There they found his body and it was exhumed. There were a lot of members from Dundee University who helped bring us this image. There aren't realistic paintings from when he was alive, so researchers had to use historical records.
Meritamun As A Mummy
In case you weren't aware, Meritamun means "beloved of the god Amun." We only know about this queen thanks to researchers from the University of Melbourne discovering her skull in their archives. Naturally, she was from ancient Egypt.
How her skull traveled across the globe is beyond anyone's comprehension. She became a Great Royal Wife of Pharaoh Ramesses the Great. Her place of burial was the Valley of the Kings, Egypt, Valley of the Queens, Egypt.
What She Actually Looked Like
Researchers couldn't find much on Meritamun mainly because all they had was her skull. Still, they managed to find some information about the former queen. It indicated that she was between 18-25 years old. Her cause of death still remains a mystery.
Something interesting they discovered was that she had a sweet tooth due to her having tooth decay. This could have possibly been from eating a lot of honey! Even queens have a vice.
The Lord Of Sipan In Art
Have you ever heard of the Moche mummies? The Lord of Sipan was the first of a slew of discoveries that have been labeled the Moche mummies. Archaeologists originally found him in 1987, in Peru.
This discovery was one of the most significant of the 20th century. The Lord of Sipan had a load of treasures buried with his body, similar to King Tut. How do you think they recreated this historical figure?
Here Is The Sipan Lord In Reality
As you can imagine, the forensic team had their work cut out for them! Sadly, pressure from the sediment broke the skull into 96 separate pieces during the excavation. Thankfully, modern tech helped a huge deal in reconstruction.
There's a process called photogrammetry (creating a 3-D image by using cameras set up at different angles) that the team used to reconfigure the skull. The Brazilian Team of Forensic Anthropology and Forensic Odontology produced this image.
Saint Anthony In Sculpture Form
In 1195, Saint Anthony was born in Lisbon, Portugal. He may have only made it to 36 years old, but he made a great impact during his day. He had a great uncanny ability to heal the sick.
The Catholic Church still adores Saint Anthony, as he is thought to be the second-fastest person to be canonized as a saint. Just a year after his death, the church declared him the saint of lost things.
What The Real Saint Anthony Looked Like
They say when Saint Anthony died, the bells rang by themselves and children were crying in the street. We know that his body was exhumed 30 years after his death, but all they had to go by were his jawbone and tongue.
Researchers from the University of St. Anthony of Padua's Anthropology Museum teamed up with a 3-D designer hailing from the University of Sao Paolo to recreate the real face of Saint Anthony.
King Henry IV In Art
Many refer to King Henry IV as "Good King Henry" or even "Henry the Great." Some find that amazing due to how his reign began. He became the King of Navarre at 19, then married two months later.
The city was flooded with Protestants as they celebrated, but they were quickly greeted with what later became known as the "St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre." The king barely avoided death and had to serve in the French Court.
What King Henry IV Actually Looked Like
It is said that The Good King survived 12 assassinations attempts during his lifetime. Researchers chose to him a subject to recreate due to his religious tolerance. The team that pieced Robespierre together is the same team that did King Henry.
That team was forensic pathologist Philippe Charlier and a facial reconstruction specialist named Philippe Froesch. Sadly, The Good King didn't survive his 13th assassination attempt. A Catholic man drove a dagger into him in 1610 and that's all she wrote.
Johann Sebastian Bach In His Potrait
Johann Sebastian Bach came from a musical background. He was born in 1685 in Germany. While he was alive, many considered him a great musician, but history will tell you he's one of the best composers to live.
He is the result of the golden age of music. Even when he was young, Bach was known as a musical prodigy with the organ, although he mainly wrote his music for the church. It is said that it would take many composers anything close to what Bach accomplished.
What Bach Actually Looked Like
Dr. Caroline Wilkinson from Dundee University had to use a cast of what she believed to be the skull of Bach to recreate him. After his death, he was buried in an unmarked grave and was almost lost to history.
150 years later the church where he was laid to rest needed renovation and that was the best chance to find him. They found what was thought to be his skull and used it to make the image you see here.
Simón Bolívar As Depicted In Art
The Venezuelan military leader known as Simón Bolívar was one of the most influential figureheads in the world. He played a huge part in the revolution against the Spanish Empire. Born into considerable wealth, he was sent to Spain for his education.
He couldn't help himself from getting caught up in the resistance movement. After France invaded Spain, many labeled him as "El Libertador," or The Liberator in English. The battle that ended his life was with the disease tuberculosis.
What Simón Bolívar Actually Looked Like
If you were to think that this was an image of a real human being then we wouldn't be surprised. Looks can be deceiving. A forensic imagery team spent a whole year poring through historical documents, with some help from the Venezuelan government.
After much research, they were able to create this legendary representation of the man. Many would believe that he is super aesthetically pleasing, something you wouldn't notice from the paintings of him.
Nicolaus Copernicus
There was a period of time when the people of Earth believed that the center of our universe was the Earth. Thankfully, Nicolaus Copernicus made things clear with his theory. Born in 1473, his model still stands true until this day.
Too bad he's not around today to tell those who think the Earth is flat that they're wrong. He was born in Poland but his brain led him all around Europe during his lifetime.
CGI Depiction Of Nicolaus
Old renditions of Copernicus don't do him much justice. He's seen as hollowed and gaunt. It's only right that once technology advanced, someone would create a better representation of the man who told us the truth about our universe.
Even with the new depictions, he still looks slightly miserable. Some would say that's the price of a genius. Oscar Wilde said the stupid and ugly live the best lives in this world. Would you agree?
The Lady of Cao
Prior to 1990, researchers had been excavating the El Brujo region of Peru when in 2005, they unearthed a mummy they called Lady of Cao. She had been buried in a simple cloth and it was estimated that she had died around the year 400.
Since she was first discovered, experts assumed that she was from the Moche, a culture of people that predated the Incas by thousands of years. Because she was mummified and buried with various artifacts it is assumed that she came from the aristocracy.
The Lady Of Cao Brought To Life
Not long after her discovery, the Lady of Cao's remains were brought to a museum in El Brujo. She is kept in a climate-controlled room, and can only be seen by looking at a mirror.
After being forensically brought back to life, it's still not clear what her role in society was. However, it is believed that she was in her late twenties when she died. She was buried with a manner of different objects, and was possibly a human sacrifice.
St. Nicholas
St. Nicholas, also known as Nikolaos of Myra, was a 4th century Christian Saint. In fact, he was a Bishop from Turkey. He had a reputation for being an extremely generous man and overall caregiver to others.
He would supposedly leave gifts in children's shoes when they left them outside, spawning the holiday of Christmas as we know it today. Although St. Nicholas was a real person, his myth certainly outgrew the reputation of the real man.
What He Really Might Have Looked Like
Although St. Nicholas has been transformed into the modern-day Santa Claus, the features of the fictional man in the sleigh couldn't be further from the truth. Considering that St. Nicholas is from the region now known as Turkey, he would have had a darker complexion and more Middle Eastern facial traits.
In the West, people tend to assume that historical figures are white like they are, but in reality, they all looked like the regions that they were from. At least he still has the beard!
Giovanni Battista Sidotti
Giovanni Battista Sidotti was born in 1668 and became an Apostolic missionary. He went to Japan to spread the word of Christianity, something that was incredibly dangerous to do at the time. Upon his arrival, he tried to disguise himself as a Samurai and failed.
He was then captured by the Japanese who imprisoned him until his death in 1714. For his actions, he is regarded as the "the last missionary," as well as a martyr in the Christian faith.
What Sidotti May Have Actually Looked Like
Luckily, Giovanni Battista Sidotti's remains were found relatively intact compared to some other historical figures that have been recovered in the past. His body was discovered in 2014 during an excavation project that cost more than 2 million yen.
This made it much easier to get a more accurate depiction of what the man might have really looked like. Although his skull was damaged, the forensic anthropologists still had all they needed to work with. They claim that this image is astonishingly close to his true likeness.
The Mycenean "Griffin Warrior"
In 2015, a tomb site was excavated that was discovered to be from the Bronze Age, dating back to 1450 BC. Inside the tomb, archaeologists found the remains of an intact male skeleton along with 14,000 objects ranging from weapons to jewelry. There was also an engraving found in the tomb which might answer clues who the man was.
Although the identity of the man is still unknown, it is believed that he might have been a Mycenaean warrior or priest. The tomb was later named the most important discovery in 65 years of the Greek Ministry of Culture.
What He May Have Looked Like
From the remains of the body that was found, it was estimated that the man was around five foot five inches, a height that would have been considered tall at the time. Also, judging by the combs discovered in the tomb, it was assumed that the Griffin Warrior also had long hair.
Using the skull found, psychical anthropologist Lynne Schepartz and Tobias Houlton from the University of the Witwatersrand created a digital interpretation of his face. They concluded that he had a prominent jaw with close-set eyes.
Dante Alighieri
Best known for his work, The Divine Comedy, Dante Alighieri is considered to be one of the most influential Italian poets of his time during the Late Middle Ages. At its core, The Divine Comedy is a description of the numerous aspects of Hell and even Heaven, many of which have become common establishments in the Christian religion.
In addition to his poetry, he was also a respected philosopher, with many of his ideals remaining relevant to this day. He passed away in 1321 at the then-relatively advanced age of 56.
What Dante May Have Looked Like
Many of the portraits that were made of Dante Alighieri are very similar, so it appears that his likeness was agreed upon by most people. This helped in making the CGI rendering which still has the stern face and hooked nose that are common in so many of the depictions of him.
His likeness was created by taking the measurements of his skull back in 1920. Unlike his portraits, this rendering gave him bigger eyes, a more rounded jaw, and a softer facial expression.