Who does this look like to you?

[AnchoredinChrist]

Maybe this photo has already been circulated on this site before, but I couldn't find it in a quick search and I hadn't seen it myself until last week so I thought I'd share. Whose name comes to mind when you see this photograph?

 

[AnchoredinChrist]

There is a super long and detailed analysis of the photograph here: https://theology.science.blog/2024/09/15/is-this-photograph-finally-joseph-smith/

Of all the points of argument, one that is really compelling to me is what the writer calls, “Apparent hypertrophy of the left orbicularis oris muscle, due possibly to forceful speaking (the outdoor preaching venues in Nauvoo were notorious for requiring loud speaking)”:

This “hypertrophy” of the left side of his mouth is visible on his death mask both when the light on the mask is shining from the side or from the front:

I also think the ear to be very distinctly compelling as well, what the writer of the article calls a "detached lobule":

[AnchoredinChrist]

When I first saw this photo last week it was from someone who said they had previously received a visitation from Joseph Smith and had seen his face. They said that they consider this purported photograph of him to be a real one.

The provenance of this photograph is WILD and an interesting story all on its own. It was first noticed by a church member (who has a blog) in a catalogue of old photographs in Brazil of all places. The original cataloguer had gotten the photograph from New York and brought it to South America. They had estimated the photograph to have been developed in 1845. Coincidentally, Joseph Smith wrote in his diary in 1844 of having his picture taken in New York. So he perhaps got the photo for his presidency campaign but died before it was sent back to Nauvoo. The church member in South America who found it in a random book of pictures decided to investigate it solely because they thought it looked like Joseph Smith.

[webbles]

Interesting.  I hope the author of the blog post does more investigation.  I think the locket picture has much better provenance since it is in the family but this one is interesting as well.

[AnchoredinChrist]

2 hours ago, webbles said:

Interesting.  I hope the author of the blog post does more investigation.  I think the locket picture has much better provenance since it is in the family but this one is interesting as well.

I happen to think the locket photo is more likely to be Hyrum Smith, and when I looked to see if anyone else had thought so too I found this analysis of it that I thought was really compelling: 

https://josephsmithjrphoto.blogspot.com/2023/07/hyrum-smiths-identity-through.html?m=1

I know many think the locket photo to be depicting a man too old to be Joseph Smith, as he died at 38 and many people think the locket picture to be of a man in his 40s.

 

Edited 12 hours ago by AnchoredinChrist

[manol]

1 hour ago, AnchoredinChrist said:

I know many think the locket photo to be depicting a man too old to be Joseph Smith, as he died at 38 and many people think the locket picture to be of a man in his 40s.

Sometimes it's not the years, it's the mileage.