Guessing what Bach looked like

A modern reconstruction of Johann Sebastian Bach’s head -- using state-of-the-art computer modeling techniques -- shows the composer as a strong-jawed man with a slight underbite, his large head topped with short, silver hair.

The bust, unveiled in Berlin on Monday, was created by anthropologist Caroline Wilkinson in her lab at the University of Dundee in Scotland.

Rather than use Bach’s actual bones, which are buried at the St. John’s Church in Leipzig, Wilkinson worked from a copper replica of Bach’s skull made for a previous reconstruction in 1894, done nearly 150 years after his death by a physician and a sculptor.

Bach’s appearance has long been surrounded by mystery. Images of the prolific composer are plentiful -- the Bach House alone has 140 likenesses -- but he is only known to have sat for one portrait, museum director Joerg Hansen said.

Because of the lack of material to work with, even Wilkinson admits that some aspects of the final product involved guesswork.