Did scientists at Harvard University create a 3D model depicting what Mary, Mother of Jesus, might have looked like? No, that's not true: This is an AI-generated image based on the likeness of Madonna, the "Queen of Pop". The joke post follows a formula which has been circulating for years online in which the face of a modern celebrity is used to represent an ancient historic figure.
The fake image appeared in a post (archived here) where it was published by @xandoys on Feb. 3, 2026. It was captioned:
Scientists at Harvard University have created this 3D Model depicting what Mary Mother of Jesus may have looked like.
These are the two images included in the post:
(Image Source: Lead Stories screenshot from x.com/xandoys/status/2018666464723828994.)
(Image Source: Lead Stories screenshot from x.com/xandoys/status/2018666464723828994.)
The account @xandoys has a photo of the pop icon Madonna as their profile picture, and a post about Madonna is pinned to the top of their feed.
The website Know Your Meme (KYM) has an entry (archived here) on the origins of this joke titled, "What Cleopatra May Have Looked Like". The earliest instance is described:
On February 18th, 2018, Twitter user @lovemedown[1] posted the copypasta with a 3D-rendered depiction of pop star Britney Spears from the 2002 video game Britney's Dance Beat, gaining over 3,800 retweets and 12,000 likes (shown below).
Since then, there have been numerous versions rehashing this joke formula. On Jan. 15, 2026, Lead Stories debunked (archived here) a claim that used the face of Kanye West to represent 14th-century ruler Mali Ruler Mansa Musa.
A few hours after @xandoys' post, a second edition of the "Mary, Mother of Jesus" spoof was published (archived here) by @pepsirain on Feb. 3, 2026. This version replaced Madonna's face with that of singer Addison Rae (pictured below) without any changes to the clothing or hair.
(Image Source: Lead Stories screenshot from x.com/pepsirain/status/2018802928211919073.)
Other fact checks
This "Mary, Mother of Jesus" trend has been duplicated several times, another version was investigated by Lighthouse Journalism.
