Scientists initially thought the remains belonged to a Neanderthal<\/a>, but a reappraisal in 2017 showed it was the earliest Homo sapiens recorded.<\/p>\n Experts have pointed out that \u2013 despite living around 315,000 years ago, before humans had ventured out of Africa \u2013 he looked surprisingly similar to modern humans.<\/p>\n Cicero Moraes, a world leader in forensic facial reconstruction, who led the work, said: \u201cIf he were dressed in modern clothes in the middle of a crowd, he would likely pass unnoticed at first glance.\u201d<\/p>\n Only a closer look would reveal slight deviations, he said, including a more \u201crobust\u201d brow and greater facial projection.<\/p>\n The skull used in the recreation is one of a select few found at a site in Morocco in the 1960s – MDPI.com \/ Heritage<\/p>\n How face was recreated…<\/p>\n To recreate the face, the experts used a 3D digital reconstruction of the Jebel Irhoud skull, produced by the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, based in Leipzig, Germany<\/a>. They added soft tissue and anatomical details based on datasets of people from Africa.<\/p>\n The team found subtle differences in face shape compared to modern humans, including a more prominent chin, a wider nose and a larger head circumference.<\/p>\n Two versions of the face were produced in the research \u2013 one in greyscale, to highlight the underlying anatomy, and a full-colour bust, with dark skin and hair.<\/p>\n Although the skull reveals no evidence of skin tone, hair or eye colour, the team added dark hair and a beard. These were considered \u201cplausible traits\u201d for someone from North Africa around 315,000 years ago, based on previous studies of archaic and modern humans.<\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/961b0cc1-b16c-429d-a3d3-defb22904faa.jpeg\"\/)
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