Scientists Recreate Face of Copper Age Thankerton Man

Posted on July 28, 2015

Scientists from the University of Dundee have recreated the face of the Thankerton Man. The young man's skeleton was found in a cist (a stone coffin-like box) at Boatbridge Quarry in Thankerton in 1970. His remains were radiocarbon dated to between 2460 B.C. and 2140 B.C.

The man is estimate to have been between 18 and 25 when he died about 4,000 years ago. He was found lying in a crouched position. The man was probably unusually tall for his time period. Scientists estimate he was about 1.8 meters (5 feet 11 inches) tall.

Scientists used skull analysis and historical data to create a reconstruction of the man's face. The reconstruction was conducted by specialists in the Center for Anatomy and Human Identification (CAHID) at the University of Dundee, which is one of the world's leading centers for facial reconstruction.

Caroline Erolin, a lecturer in forensic and medical art at CAHID, says in a statement, "Given its age, the skeleton of Thankerton Man was in excellent condition, which allowed us to get a strong impression of how he may have looked. Once we built the basic shape of his face we then looked at historical data to get a better idea of how a man would have looked at that time. For instance, we know they had the ability to shave."

Here is a video showing the different sides of Thankerton Man's reconstructed face:

ARCHAEOLOGY