Meet Ava... age 3,700
SHE died more than 3,700 years ago but now, thanks to modern reconstruction techniques, we have an idea of what she looked like.
The woman’s bones, including a skull and teeth, were discovered at Achavanich in Caithness in 1987.
Known as Ava – an abbreviation of Achavanich – she is the subject of a research project managed by archaeologist Maya Hoole.
The reconstruction was created by forensic artist Hew Morrison, a graduate of Dundee University.
The remains are being held in Caithness Horizons museum in Thurso, along with the other artefacts found with her.
The young woman is thought to be Caucasian and aged between 18 and 22. She is also believed to have been part of the Beaker people – a much wider European group named after their distinctive pottery.
Remarkably, Ava was discovered buried in a pit that was dug into solid rock, with an abnormally shaped skull that some suggest was the result of deliberate binding.
Skulls among this group of people were typically short and round, yet Miss Hoole said the Bronze Age woman’s was exaggerated and of an abnormal and uneven shape.
Mr Morrison used an anthropological formula to work out the depth of Ava’s skin and the shape of her missing lower jaw, as well as a chart of modern average tissue depths. He said: ‘The size of the lips can be determined by measuring the enamel of the teeth and the width of the mouth from the position of the teeth.’
Mr Morrison rebuilt the layers of muscle and tissue over her face and used high-resolution images of faces to recreate her features.
Individual features were then arranged to fit with the anatomy of the skull, before being ‘morphed together’ to reconstruct the face using computer software.
Mr Morrison said: ‘Normally, when working on a live, unidentified person’s case not so much detail would be given to skin tone, eye or hair colour as none of these can be determined from the anatomy of the skull. Creating a reconstruction based on archaeological remains is different in that a greater amount of artistic licence can be allowed.’