[Swordmaker]

Turns out, alas, that it's not a true negative, but a 3-D negative ~ which modern computer systems can evaluate to give us a realistic representation of the individual so imaged.

No doubt the artist who came up with this process made many thousands of copies which are to be found in the back shelves of libraries throughout Eur-Asia.

And, alas, it is not even truly 3D but only quasi-3D.

The truly amazing thing, is that once our purported artist developed the miraculous technique, he never, ever, made anything using it again. Oh, My, the restraint it must have taken to not make and sell one to someone else...

[muawiyah]

Yes, truly amazing. Maybe the artist knew his technique was far beyond the technology of his times ~ but such restraint, almost like he had a copy of the Star Trek protocols for alien contact.