Forensic Art

One interesting development out of the need to identify victims is Forensic Art. When a body has deteriorated so badly that its surface features are no longer informative, police rely on experts to examine other parts that may still yield clues, such as comparing teeth with dental records. However appearance remains the most often and widely  remembered characteristic about an individual. In the film Gorky Park, a Forensic Professor assists the police investigator (played by William Hurt). He intentionally uses fly larvae to remove the last remains of flesh adhering to the skull of a victim, so that the exact contours of the bone can be studied. He then proceeds to sculpt the face back on to the clean skull using modelling compounds.

Image courtesy of G. Attardi, University of Pisa

Activity

Print out the worksheet for this topic

Read through the material provided through the links below to answer the questions.

Facial Reconstruction

Putting faces on history

Genetics and the face

Faces from ancient times:

Improvements  in forensic analysis this have influenced other areas of science such as Egyptology and archaeology. By following rules (called the Manchester protocol) about the thickness of muscle, tendon and skin at a specific sites on the skull, researchers are now experimenting with giving a likeness back to ancient mummified remains. Putting in the eyes, lips and ears is still very much a guess. With enhanced X-ray and computer virtual modelling techniques archaeologists can replicate a face without even unwrapping the mummy.

Some  links to investigate:

Face to face with mummies

A face from the past

Giving mummies a face

The mummy that came with its own portrait

The mummy from Fayum Oasis

Excellent pictures of a virtual remodelling project are shown in this on-line paper  that describes the work of an Italian research team who reconstructed the face of a Libyan mummy.