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Researchers digitally separated funerary masks from CT scans of four pre-Hispanic individuals from Colombia’s Eastern Cordillera, then built facial reconstructions from their skulls. The masks were not physically removed, and the resulting images are informed possibilities—not exact portraits.
What researchers reconstructed
Face Lab at Liverpool John Moores University (LJMU) examined four masked individuals whose remains are held in the Colombian Institute of Anthropology and History collection. Their graves had been looted, leaving little archaeological context, according to LJMU’s project announcement.
The sample comprised a child estimated to have been 6–7 years old, a woman in her 60s, and two young adult men. Live Science reports that radiocarbon dating for the remains spans 1216–1797, but does not assign a precise date to each person. The masks were made from resin, clay, wax, and maize. They were damaged, with noses and portions of their bases missing; some ornamental beads around the eyes remained, according to Live Science’s report by Sophie Berdugo.
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How the masks were removed digitally
- CT scanning: The team scanned the masked skulls to create digital data showing the underlying remains and mask material.
- Digital separation: Researchers isolated the mask layers in the scans, effectively exposing the skulls on screen. The project account describes digital unmasking, not physical removal from fragile remains.
- Virtual reconstruction: Using specialized software and a haptic stylus, the team modeled facial muscles, soft tissue, fat, and surface details over the exposed skulls.
The work examined an unusual funerary practice in Eastern Colombia, but the looted graves and small sample limit what can be concluded about its wider cultural context.
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What the reconstructions are based on
Skull anatomy provided a foundation for the faces. The team estimated nose size and shape from the bony structures and used facial analysis and anatomical standards to model the soft tissue. For the two adult men, average facial tissue-depth data from modern Colombian men informed the reconstruction. Comparable contemporary reference data for Colombian women and children were not available to the team, Live Science reports.
Other visual choices were less directly constrained by the skulls. The team added coloring described as typical of the region, along with details such as wrinkles, freckles, eyelashes, and pores. The researchers did not know the individuals’ exact skin tones or whether they had tattoos or scars. Project manager Jessica Liu told Live Science that texture was especially difficult to establish because such personal details are unknown. Neutral expressions were chosen rather than assigning the individuals an expression that might suggest personality.
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Are the faces accurate portraits?
No. Liu said the images show “what they could have looked like rather than ‘this is what they looked like’,” as quoted by Live Science. The reconstructions combine evidence from the skulls with reference averages and interpretation; they cannot recover each person’s exact appearance. The missing comparative tissue-depth data for the woman and child are an additional limitation, and the available sources do not support ranking one image as more accurate than another.
What the project does—and does not—show
The four reconstructions offer a way to visualize individuals whose faces had been covered by funerary masks. LJMU describes the masks as extraordinary workmanship and, in the words of Dr Felipe Cárdenas-Arroyo of the Academia Colombiana de Historia, “so far, the only ones known to exist in Colombia.” The project announcement also says the work received British Academy funding.
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The faces were presented at the XI World Congress on Mummy Studies in Cuzco, Peru, scheduled for August 11–15, 2025; Live Science reports that their first presentation took place on August 14. Four people cannot establish how common this funerary practice was across Colombia or represent the appearance of a broader population.
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