Neanderthals are a group of ancient humans who became extinct tens of thousands of years ago. Well, scientists have reconstructed the face of an 8-year-old Nanderthal boy, who allegedly died 30,000 years ago.
Its fossils were found in 1939 in a cave in Uzbekistan. It is the first Neanderthal fossil discovered in Asia, and the only Asian Neanderthal fossil in existence today.
Seen in this 3-dimensional reconstruction, his face is similar to that of Homo Sapiens, but still quite different. The nasal passages are small, with large holes.
As quoted from the Daily Mail, a fossil skull was found in a narrow gap in the cave, along with animal horns and bird skeletons. This indicates he was buried in a certain ritual.
Researchers at the Netherlands' Max Planck Institute analyzed the Neanderthal boy's skull. He is predicted to be 8 years old and is quite mature physically.
It matched Neanderthal characteristics, with features such as a large face and nose, a long, low skull, a mandible without a chin, and prominent eyebrows.
The team uploaded a scan of the skull and filled in the missing pieces, reconstructing it with digital muscles, skin and the boy's facial features. Be then the face of this Neanderthal boy, to reveal what he was like when he was alive long ago.
Previously, it was long believed that Neanderthals only settled in Europe during the late ice age. However, a study by the University of Washington suggests they may have spread farther east and lived with modern humans there for much longer than previously thought.