Amid an ongoing standoff between the Union and Tamil Nadu governments over the Keezhadi excavations, researchers from Madurai Kamaraj University, in collaboration with Liverpool John Moores University in the United Kingdom, have successfully conducted facial reconstructions of two ancient skulls excavated from the Keezhadi archaeological site in Sivaganga district.
The faces were recreated using a computer-assisted 3D facial reconstruction system, according to Professor Caroline Wilkinson, director of the Face Lab at Liverpool John Moores University. “We used CT scans of the skulls to reconstruct the facial musculature and estimate the features following anatomical and anthropometrical standards,” she told The Times of India. While the upper halves of the faces were reconstructed with greater accuracy using skull characteristics and established anatomical relationships, Wilkinson noted that the lower halves involved more estimation.
The team employed digital sculpting techniques to simulate the placement of muscle, fat, and skin. They also estimated tissue depth at various points on the skull, referencing modern south Indian anthropometric data.
In the report, Professor G Kumaresan of Madurai Kamaraj University has explained that the final reconstructed faces — complete with estimated skin tone, hair, and eye colours — were produced using a photographic database.
According to the report, a combination of facial reconstruction and DNA data could offer vital insights into the ancestry of the Tamil people who lived roughly 2,500 years ago during the Sangam period.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin, sharing The Times of India report on social media platform X, wrote, “The way of life detailed in Sangam literature now stands scientifically validated through the findings at Keeladi.”
Finance Minister Thangam Thenarasu expressed pride over the facial reconstruction, calling it further proof of Tamil civilisation’s ancient roots. “Though the Union BJP government has deceitfully tried to suppress the history and heritage of Tamils, constructive scientific findings and historical evidence emerging from the Keezhadi excavations continue to defeat the Union government’s unjust denials,” he wrote on X, urging the Union government to release the pending Keezhadi research report.
A controversy had recently erupted over the transfer of lead excavator of the Keezhadi archaeological site, K Amarnath Ramakrishna, after he allegedly refused to revise his report as directed by the Archaeological Survey of India. ASI had requested that he rework his January 2023 submission to make it “more authentic,” particularly disputing the timeline from the 8th to 5th century BCE, saying it should “at the maximum” be pre-300 BCE.
However, Amarnath defended his findings saying that they were “well-reasoned conclusive findings.”