Now, two men who lived 2,500 years ago, where South India is now lively with a new digital reconstruction, research into their bodies reveals secrets about their mystical civilization.
The realistic facial model is based on two skulls discovered at a burial site known as the Conda Guy. This was told to Kumaresanganesan, head of the Department of Genetics at Madurai Kamaraj University, located in Kumaresanganesan, Tamil Nadu, south India, and was involved in the analysis of humans discovered in Kondagai.
Kondagai is believed to be the burial site for a nearby archaeological site called Keeladi, which considers it to be the home of a sophisticated urban civilization around 580 BC.
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The first traces of Keeladi were identified by Indian archaeological surveys in 2013, with only a small portion of the ancient urban settlements and associated burial sites being excavated up to date.
By analyzing ancient DNA extracted from skulls and other humans found in Kondagai, Ganesan and his team are trying to learn more about the mysterious inhabitants of Keiradi.
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Bringing two skulls to “life”
The two skulls were excavated in 2021. Researchers discovered the body inside the burial bone ns. The people of Keiradi buried the deaths in these urs along with cemeteries containing gems, ceramics and food offerings, research shows.
Anatomical analysis by another scientist suggested that the man was between 50 and 60 years of age when he died. The cause of their deaths is still unknown.
To replicate the individual’s appearance, researchers employed CT scans of the skulls, created virtual 3D models of them, and sent them to Face Labs in the UK, a research unit specializing in facial reconstruction.
“these [reconstructed] The model helps us understand people from the past and helps us compare ourselves to our ancestors,” Caroline Wilkinson, director of the Faith Lab at Liverpool John Moores University in the UK, which created the reconstruction, told Live Science.
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Face Lab members digitally reproduced facial elements around the skull bones, including muscle, fat, and skin. They used a database of modern South Asian populations for reference, including information on soft tissue depth and other facial features, Ganesan said.
In addition to how the signs of aging were drawn, there were creative interpretations involved in the choice of eye, skin and hair color, Wilkinson noted.
In this case, the average South Indian eye, skin and hair colour was used, Ganesan said. However, he described these reconstructions as “first drafts,” and his team is working to derive more data from DNA extracted from the skull, which could provide new insights in the most appropriate colour. “Once you get it, it’s updated as needed,” Ganesan said.
With ongoing skull DNA research, one of the researchers’ goals is to trace the ancestors of these ancient individuals. Preliminary genetic findings suggest that these ancients have a close affinity with modern South Asian people. So, Ganesan said they could be the ancestors of some people who live in South India today.
“But there is no DNA data to specify that,” he added, explaining that researchers have access to a wide range of DNA databases for the modern South Asian population, but do not have the region-specific data needed for the wider region of Tamil Nadu or South India.
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