Did Santa really exist?

Mon, December 25, 2017 / 12:24 pm

+ See SlideShow

/

A man dressed as a Santa Claus descends from the roof of the Pediatric Clinic in Ljubljana, on December 19, 2017. Men dressed as a Santa Claus descended from the roof of Pediatric Clinic to entertain the children and bring them presents. AFP/Jure Makovec
+ See SlideShow

/

A man dressed as a Santa Claus greets children near a giant Christmas tree, as he walks in the Christian Quarter of the old city of Jerusalem on December 20, 2017. AFP/Gali Tibbon
+ See SlideShow

/

A man dressed as Santa Claus rides a camel along Jerusalem's Old City Ottoman walls on December 21, 2017. AFP/Gali Tibbon
+ See SlideShow

/

A man dressed as Santa Claus dives in the Paris aquarium on December 21, 2017. AFP/Alain Jocard
+ See SlideShow

/

Members of a Lebanese water ski club perform while dressed in Santa Clause outfits in the bay of Jounieh on December 22, 2017. AFP/Patrick Baz
+ See SlideShow

/

A girl points at a Minnie Mouse on December 22, 2017 at "Arbo & Santa's Dog Park", a residential front yard full of Christmas decorations set up by "Mr. Holiday", a resident of Washington, DC who celebrates every single holiday of the year. AFP/Eva Hambach
+ See SlideShow

/

A man dressed as Santa Claus gestures as he plays with children during a Christmas event at the Book Cafe in the northern Iraqi city of Arbil, the capital of the autonomous Kurdistan region, on December 23, 2017. AFP/Safin Hamed
+ See SlideShow

/

Participants wear Santa Claus costumes as hey take part in the Christmas race at Dvortsovaya square in Saint Petersburg, on December 23, 2017. AFP/Olga Maltseva
+ See SlideShow

/

People dressed as (L-R) Batman, Santa Claus and Iron Man walk at the presidential palace in Abidjan on December 23, 2017, during a Christmas event organised by the Children of Africa Foundation. The event, organised by Ivory Coast's first lady and president of the Children of Africa Foundation, welcomed 3000 children from Abidjan and Agboville. AFP/Sia Kambou
+ See SlideShow

/

A dog dressed in a Christmas costume and its owner walk along a street in Beijing on December 24, 2017. AFP/Wang Zhao
+ See SlideShow

/

A man dressed as Santa Claus with Superman t-shirt takes part in the traditional New Year's Santa Claus race in Skopje, on December 24, 2017. AFP/Robert Atanasovski
+ See SlideShow

/

A child plays the tambourine while men dressed as Santa Claus take part in the traditional New Year's Santa Claus race in Skopje, on December 24, 2017. AFP/Robert Atanasovski
+ See SlideShow

/

A man dressed as Santa Claus waves to people as he rides in the sidecar of a motorcycle, ahead of the motorcade of Archbishop Pierbattista Pizzaballa, Apostolic Administrator of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, while crossing through an Israeli checkpoint in the controversial separation barrier to attend Christmas eve celebrations in the West Bank city of Bethlehem December 24, 2017. AFP/Hazem Bader

Was Santa real? Scientists have offered a tantalizing clue by dating a bone said to belong to St Nicholas, the inspiration for Father Christmas, to the same century in which he died in what is now Turkey.

Oxford University researchers analysed a micro-sample of a pelvis fragment and found that it dated back to the fourth century.

Legend has it that St Nicholas, who is depicted with a white beard in icons and was said to have died in 343 AD, was widely known for his generosity -- a trait that inspired the story of Father Christmas.

AFP