World-renown forensic artist Lois Gibson produced this sketch from a partial skull unearthed at the Alamo. Is this the face of an Alamo defender or a Mexican soldier killed in the famous 1836 battle? (Image courtesy of Lois Gibson)

A New Alamo Face Emerges 188 Years Later

A Forensic Sketch of a Skull Unearthed at the Alamo Likely Depicts an 1836 Battle Participant

By Ron J. Jackson, Jr.

Death descended upon the Alamo March 6, 1836, like a swift, violent storm. Beneath the light of an opaque moon, thousands of Mexican soldiers hurled themselves against the compound’s walls…