Shakespeare under the microscope

This isn't new, but I saw a recent review of a book by Stephanie Nolen - "Shakespeare's Face" which is an in depth study of a portrait of William Shakespeare purported to have been done by John Sanders and had been kept in the Sanders family ever since, coming with them when they emigrated to Canada. When it had been originally appraised by A.M. Spielmann, a London expert on Shakespearean iconography, in 1909 he had dismissed it as a 17th century fake.

Modern scientific techniques and a reapraisal by other experts have left the door open to conjecture. It is now the centre of controversy - is this the face of genius? I doubt if there will ever be a definitive answer, but I know that I would like it to be genuine!