The ‘wise’ face of ancient Egypt’s most powerful pharaoh has been revealed, shown moments before he died.
Ramesses II, who reigned in the 13th century BC, was the nation’s greatest ruler, known for his colossal statues and military exploits during his reign from 1279 to 1213 BC.
Scientists used a 3D model of the king’s skull, overlaying it with soft tissue and skin to recreate his appearance. at the time of his death, around age 90.
The realistic image revealed a frail, elderly man with a weathered face and some features similar to the giant statues of Ramses still found in Egypt.
Ramesses II, who reigned in the 13th century BC, was the nation’s greatest ruler, known for his colossal statues and military exploits during his reign from 1279 to 1213 BC.
Cicero Moraes, the Brazilian graphic expert responsible for the new recreation, said: ‘In the present study we carried out a very extensive analysis, comparing the reconstructed face with the statues of Ramses II.
“The goal was to understand to what extent the statues are reliable, since many believe that the compatibility would be good. But we have seen that this is not the case: the statues indicate a good compatibility with the shape of the nose and even, in some situations, with the shape of the face.
The statues of Ramses II have a more delicate forehead and lips and a more pronounced chin, making the image’s features ‘insufficiently reliable.
“We also analyzed anthropometric and DNA data from ancient Egyptian populations, and all paths seem to point to a population made up of many elements that are difficult to standardize,” Moraes said.
The team chose a skin color palette that has been seen in ancient Egyptian art, as the true shade is unknown.
They also designed a greyscale version showing the pharaoh’s eyes closed to avoid judging his complexion, but the team has suggested that criticism will soon follow.
Scientists used a 3D model of the king’s mummified face, covering it with soft tissue and skin to recreate his appearance at the time of his death, aged around 90.
The realistic image revealed a frail old man with a weathered face and some features similar to the giant statues of Ramses still preserved in Egypt.
The team chose a skin color palette that has been seen in ancient Egyptian art, as the true shade is unknown.
‘There is always criticism of any work published on the Internet, just look at the comments in the news and the debate on social media,’ Moraes said.
‘I am in favour of freedom of expression. I personally have never blocked anyone on my social networks for thinking differently than me or for insulting me.
“But I also have freedom of expression and I generally use it to clarify points and refute what is incoherent.”
The team also used information from a 1976 study of the mummified remains of Ramses, found in 1881, which restored tissues and created new bandages.
The study also determined that Ramses II had a pronounced bite and his teeth were significantly worn.
The pharaoh also had poor dental and bone health, mainly due to an abscess, which would have caused him a lot of pain.
The statues of Ramesses II have a more delicate forehead and more pronounced lips and chin, which makes the features of the image not “sufficiently reliable”.
The king’s remains were discovered in 1881.
Although the king lived a long life, his “The muscles showed signs of memory loss and he had very pronounced veins on his forehead,” Moraes and his team shared.
The team wanted to represent the aging lineups in the recreation of the king.
They collected data from hundreds of modern Egyptians to reveal the likely thickness of the pharaoh’s skin in different places on his skull.
Another technique was anatomical deformation, in which the face and skull of a living donor, who also had a pronounced underbite, were digitally altered to match the dimensions of the mummy.
The end result is a combination of these approaches, before aging it properly and adding subjective elements such as clothing. It reveals what Moraes called a “wise” face.
The result also looked similar to an earlier reconstruction of a younger Ramses II from 2022 (pictured)
The result also seemed similar to an earlier reconstruction from 2022, created by Sahar Saleem of Cairo University and Caroline Wilkinson of Liverpool John Moores University.
Other methods were used, but Moraes said he was satisfied with the result.
The 2022 facial reconstruction was carried out by scientists from Egypt and England, who also used a 3D model of his skull.
They then reversed the aging process, turning back the clock almost half a century to reveal his face at the height of his powers.
Saleem said the result had revealed a “very handsome” ruler.
“My imagination of Ramses II’s face was influenced by the face of his mummy,” he continued.
‘However, facial reconstruction helped give the mummy a living face.
“I believe the reconstructed face is that of a very handsome Egyptian with facial features characteristic of Ramses II: a pronounced nose and a strong jaw.”