Abstract
On both sides of the Veil of Manoppello, made with very thin linen, translucent linen threads, probably starched, a Holy Face of Jesus Christ is visible. During the centuries, the yellowing of the linen threads has changed the aspect of the original face, in particular producing unnatural colours of the eyes. Indeed, as inferred by some experimental evidences, both on a microscopic and a macroscopic scale, the eyes were probably originally blue. Blue was the colour mainly affected by the yellowing of the linen threads, leading to greenish shades not compatible with human irises’ colours. Thus, we think that this finding compelled an artist to retouch the eyes’ irises with brown colour. The theoretical analysis of degradation times of the cellulose contained in starched linen indicates that, at ambient temperature, the yellowing takes about ten centuries to reach 95% of its maximum. Due to its peculiar optical characteristics and historical vicissitudes, the Veil of Manoppello likely coincides with the Veronica’s Veil, the alleged relic of the face of Christ impressed during his Passion, just before his crucifixion. If the Manoppello and Veronica’s Veils are the same object, any hypothesized colour retouch was done just before its first known public procession and exhibition in Rome, i.e., before the year 1200, after ten centuries of yellowing. Therefore, the Veil of Manoppello could be very ancient, even of the Roman epoch.
Highlights
The Veil of Manoppello, kept in a sanctuary of the Italian town of Manoppello in Central Italy, is a rectangular canvas of 240 × 175 mm2, representing the face of Christ (Holy Face)
The corneal limbus, which is the darker-colour circle that characterizes the outermost part of each iris immediately before the white sclera of the eye, is clearly visible with visible light, but disappears almost completely and shows noncircular contours under infrared radiation [1]. These results could suggest the possible presence of some touch-ups and the possible contribution of other underlying chromatic components, different from those directly seen with visible light, in particular for some important anatomical parts of the Veil of Manoppello Holy Face, such as hairs and eyes
The original colour of the eyes of the Holy Face could have been blue; If the irises’ colour was blue, over the centuries, it has become altered because of the yellowing of the linen; (iii) After about 10 centuries, the colour of the eyes must have been so unnatural to compel an artist to retouch the iris, by covering the unnatural greenish color, with brown, more acceptable for public exhibitions. Based on this technical analysis, our hypothesis is that the Veil of Manoppello is likely of the
Summary
The Veil of Manoppello, kept in a sanctuary of the Italian town of Manoppello in Central Italy, is a rectangular canvas of 240 × 175 mm , representing the face of Christ (Holy Face). The corneal limbus, which is the darker-colour circle that characterizes the outermost part of each iris immediately before the white sclera of the eye, is clearly visible with visible light, but disappears almost completely and shows noncircular contours under infrared radiation [1] These results could suggest the possible presence of some touch-ups and the possible contribution of other underlying chromatic components, different from those directly seen with visible light, in particular for some important anatomical parts of the Veil of Manoppello Holy Face, such as hairs and eyes. If this is the case, why and when has the colour of the irises and of other anatomical parts of the Veil of Manoppello Holy Face been retouched?
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
