Based on skull analysis, experts reconstructed the face of a 16-year-old noblewoman buried in the 7th century in a unique ritual.
Reconstructed image of a 16-year-old girl's face with the Trumpington cross. Photo: Hew Morrison
A team of forensic artists, archaeologists and bioarchaeologists reconstructed the face of a 16-year-old girl buried in the 7th century in Cambridge, England, Interesting Engineering reported on April 19. The Cambridge Archaeology Unit of the University of Cambridge discovered the mysterious girl's bones in Trumpington Meadows, a suburb south of Cambridge, in 2012.
To reconstruct the young woman’s face, the team used depth data measurements of tissue and skull for a Caucasian woman. While they are unsure about her eye and hair color without DNA analysis, they believe the reconstruction is a good idea of what she looked like a few months before her death.
Isotope analysis of her bones and teeth revealed that after the age of seven, she likely migrated to England from somewhere near the Alps, possibly southern Germany. After arriving in England, her diet was significantly reduced. The researchers believe that the change in diet occurred near the end of her life, suggesting a relatively short time between migration and death.
"She was very young when she moved in. She was probably not very well and had to travel a long way to a place that was completely unfamiliar, even with different food. It must have been very frightening," said Dr Sam Leggett, a bioarchaeologist at the University of Edinburgh. However, experts have not been able to determine the girl's specific cause of death despite many scientific investigations.
The 16-year-old girl was buried in a unique “bed burial” with an elaborate headboard. She was placed on a carved wooden bed, wearing a gold and garnet cross. Several gold pins and elaborate clothing were also buried in the grave.
The cross, known as the Trumpington, is one of only five of its kind found in Britain. The most famous example of such a cross was found in the coffin of St Cuthbert.
These artifacts indicate that the young girl was likely one of the earliest Christians in Britain in the 7th century. She was most likely of noble birth, and was buried in a unique ceremony. According to the research team, only 18 such bed graves have been discovered in Britain to date.
The study of the 16-year-old girl’s remains has helped scientists learn more about human life more than a millennium ago and about important religious periods in Cambridge’s history. The facial reconstruction, along with other artefacts, is due to go on display in an exhibition at the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology (MAA), Cambridge, next year.
Thu Thao (According to Interesting Engineering )
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