Over many years, Curator Alexandra Fletcher has formed a particularly strong bond with one of the… older people in the British Museum. In fact, she was one of the first to see his face in over 9,500 years. The Jericho Skull is arguably the oldest portrait in the British Museum – a human skull from the ancient city of Jericho which had plaster applied to it to form a type of early facial reconstruction.
The Jericho Skull is fascinating to look at, but since being discovered in 1953, archaeologists weren’t able to find out much more about this man – until now. Using CT scanning, 3D printing and facial reconstruction, Alexandra and her team have finally been able to reveal the man behind the plaster.