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"First there are what we may define as the superficial facial
wounds, perhaps the least obvious to a layman, but readily discernible
to the eye of a qualified physician. Dr. Willis listed these wounds as
follows:
- swelling of both eyebrows,
- torn right eyelid,
- large swelling below right eye,
- swollen nose,
- triangular-shaped wound on right cheek with apex pointing to nose,
- swelling to left cheek,
- swelling to left side of chin.
"These injuries are readily in harmony with the gospel accounts of
Christ being struck repeatedly on the face, both at the hands of
the High Priest's men and Pilate's soldiers, prior to the sentence
of crucifixion."
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(Regarding what seems to be blood flows from the scalp):
"Only one has flowed almost vertically, at least seven
have veered to the left and three to the right.
They have been caused by
independent puncture wounds of the scalp, which bleeds freely when injured,
and they tend to expand as they descend. They have been halted on the nape
of the neck along a line convex downwards which, assuming them to have
been caused by something like a cap of thorns, would seem to be
at the level where the thorn-branches had been secured to the back
of the head. The different directions of the flows would suggest
a tilting of the head at various times during the wearing of the
spiky cap. Turning to the front, there are similar puncture wounds
with their counter-drawings of bloodflows but not so numerous as
on the back. There are four or five that start from the top of
the forehead moving down towards the eyes and the remainder are
tangled in the masses of hair framing the face. The most striking
of these flows is one in the shape of a reversed three and repays
detailed study, so true to life is it. It starts just below the
hairline to the left of the midline from a single wound; the flow
then moves down to the medial part of the arch above the left eye
following a meandering course obliquely and outwards. As the stream
descends it broadens and alters course twice, finally building up
and spreading out horizontally to the mesial line. Immediately below
but separate is a "tear" of blood close to the eyebrow, which
is presumably part of the same flow, or possibly from an independent
wound. The reason for the meandering course of this vivid mark indicates
that it met some obstruction in its downward course, and most
likely this was due to the reflex contraction of the muscles
of the brow from the pain of the wounds, furrowing the surface."
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"As Dr. Willis found, it is quite impossible to talk sensibly
about wounds such as these except in the context of a crown,
or as it seems most likely to have been, a cap of thorns as described
in the mockery of Christ as King of the Jews. Equally, as one reads such
a description from a qualified physician, one cannot fail to be caught
up by his own conviction of the sheer physiological logic of these
wounds. Willis was not alone in this regard. Vignon too was fascinated
by the thorn wounds, particularly the one shaped like a numeral three,
which he too found entirely faithful to scientific and physiological
detail. As he remarked, 'No painter, in his most elaborate work, has
ever risen to such exactitude. (Wilson)"
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