Scientists at the FAPAB Research Center in Italy have unveiled the forensic facial reconstruction of a young woman who lived in Thebes, Egypt in the early 26th dynasty. The mummy of the young woman arrived in Switzerland as early as 1820 and has been the star among mummies in the country ever since.
The forensic reconstruction on the skull was made in multiple phases following the Manchester method, the gold standard of available forensic methods.
According to the published paper, once the mummy’s skull was digitized, the team reconstructed the soft tissue using anatomical measuring points and the empirical mean values determined from forensic studies. The eyes were positioned following the average anatomy of the structure, the ears resulted from a projection of the eyebrow and the base of the nose, and the lips followed the median projection between the middle of the eyes and the canines and by the height of the teeth. Both the modern research team and the recovering team in 1820 noted the “good and complete preservation” of the mummy’s teeth.
These measuring points led to the first outline of the face. Next, the team implemented the Manchester method to model the facial muscles, fat pads and skin according to the previously determined soft tissue thickness at specific anatomical points. This resulted in the first simulation of the face—before color and texture were added to create the final reconstruction.
Unlike many other skeletal facial reconstructions, the researchers chose not to depict jewelry, clothing or wigs in deference to accuracy.
“These are hypothetical assumptions,” the researchers said. “Our reconstruction focuses exclusively on the forensically reconstructed appearance and the anatomical evidence.”
Speaking of accuracy, the research team believes the final facial reconstruction is very similar to how Shep-en-Isis looked during her lifetime circa 664 to 525 B.C.
“Due to the mummified ear, the shape of the ear could be reconstructed quite accurately, in contrast to pure skeletons where ears are basically reconstructed with a standard ear,” the researchers said. “Certain details may not have been recorded for Shep-en-Isis, for example, we do not know the exact eye color or the exact skin complexion. But, due to her Egyptian ancestry, brown eyes and a somewhat more olive skin color were assumed.”
Beyond a face, the research team was also able to reconstruct Shep-en-Isis’ family tree. When she arrived in Switzerland in 1820, a second mummy was with her: a male with the name Pa-es-tjenfi. Working off the assumption the older male was her father, researchers successfully traced the family name through centuries.
Photo: © FAPAB Research Center/Cicero Moraes 2021.