An American college student, while vacationing in Italy, spotted a doppelganger for the movie star in a Roman fresco. The Raphael painting, called "The Cardinal and Theological Virtues," was done in 1511 and shows Pope Gregory IX approving papal laws. Standing in the background is the Stallone lookalike complete with droopy eyes and iron chin.

OK, so it wasn't really Stallone. But the man who brought to life "Rocky," "Rambo" -- and is reprising his role in "The Expendables 2" this summer -- does bear more than a passing resemblance to an unnamed onlooker in a 1511 painting of Pope Gregory IX approving the Vatical Decretals.

Note the cheekbones. Note the heavy eyelids. Note the nose, the hair, the chiseled chin. Heck, everything about the holy man in the painting looks like Sly.

It's interesting to note that Stallone is himself a painter.

Of course, this isn't the first time a current celebrity was thought to resemble someone from way back when. Some wonder if Jack Black and Paul Revere are one and the same. A year or so ago, somebody discovered an old photo of a Civil War soldier who looked a lot like Nicolas Cage.

In an interview with David Letterman, Cage acknowledged the similarities, but insisted that he wasn't a time traveler from the 19th century.

Stallone's publicist had no comment.