The Historical Jesus

If Jesus of Nazareth were a real historical figure, I like to imagine that he would have looked something like this. This isn't the first time I've drawn a portrait of Jesus, but it's a subject I like to return to every once in a while as my drawing style evolves. Here, I've chosen to depict him as a man of predominantly Palestinian Jewish heritage, but with a suggestion of African ancestry. Since the region of Palestine (which includes modern Israel as well as the West Bank and Gaza) is right next door to Africa, it seems likely that the Hebrews and other Semitic natives of the area would have admixed with African peoples such as the ancient Egyptians and Kushites. Indeed, up to 20% of Palestinian men (and 30% of Jewish men around the world) have the African Y-chromosomal haplogroup E. As for Jesus's turban here, it's speculative on my part, but something like it might have come in handy for a busy carpenter sweating under the desert sun.