Building Faces From Fossils
- By Melissa Salpietra
- Posted 10.26.09
- NOVA
Paleoartist Viktor Deak blends science with artistry as he meticulously reconstructs the faces of early hominids. In this audio slide show, watch as he takes a cast of the skull of the famous Turkana Boy from fossil to fully realized portrait.
Launch Interactive
Paleoartist Viktor Deak works from casts of fossil skulls to put faces to Turkana Boy and other ancient hominids.
Editor's note: Many anthropologists today use the label Homo ergaster to distinguish Homo erectus within Africa from H. erectus outside of Africa. In this feature, as in NOVA's "Becoming Human," Turkana Boy is considered Homo erectus for simplicity’s sake.
Credits
IMAGE CREDITS
- (wall of skulls, skulls on shelf, Deak with skull, H. Neanderthal and P. boisei heads in studio, blue-suited actors, Deak in studio)
- © WGBH Educational Foundation
- (all Turkana Boy reconstruction stages, H. Neanderthal reconstruction, A. afarensis reconstruction, Homo heidelbergensis skull with muscle markings, chimpanzee anatomy, gorilla temporalis muscle, digital Turkana Boy body, digital reconstruction of H. neanderthalensis, digital reconstruction of A. afarensis, digital reconstruction of Turkana Boy)
- © Viktor Deak
- (portrait of Viktor Deak)
- © Erik Olsen/The New York Times/Redux
- (human nose)
- © emre ogan photography/istockphoto.com
- (gorilla nose)
- © Inkling Arts/istockphoto.com
- (human muscle anatomy)
- © lindabucklin.com/istockphoto.com
- (H. floresiensis display)
- © Denis Finnin/AMNH; from the Anne and Bernard Spitzer Hall of Human Origins at the American Museum of Natural History
Related Links
-
Who's Who In Human Evolution
Meet your increasingly distant cousins in this clickable illustration of the past seven million years.
-
The Adaptable Human
Paleoanthropologist Rick Potts believes modern humans were adapted to change itself, as he explains in this interview.
-
Origins of Bipedalism
Explore hypotheses for why we stand up, choose your favorite, then hear what paleoanthropologist Donald Johanson thinks.
Evolution Resources
Text
-
Are We Still Evolving?
Whether humans are still evolving biologically depends—and doesn’t—on which humans you ask.
-
The DNA of Human Evolution
Computational biologist Katie Pollard describes key parts of our DNA that distinguish us from other apes.
-
What Is Evo Devo?
Cliff Tabin defines the new field of "evo devo" and some of the groundbreaking discoveries he and others have made.
-
Ten Great Advances in Evolution
Carl Zimmer looks at 10 significant recent advances in evolution studies.
-
The Adaptable Human
Paleoanthropologist Rick Potts believes modern humans were adapted to change itself, as he explains in this interview.
Video
-
Becoming Human: Series Overview
Unearthing our earliest ancestors
-
Lice and Human Evolution
Icky and itchy, yes, but lice hold important clues to our evolution in their DNA.
-
Where Did We Come From?
Explore the origin of our solar system and the start of life itself, how head lice figure in human evolution, and more.
-
Revealing the Origins of Life
How did molecules first make the leap from non-living to living? An English chemist may have solved part of the mystery.
-
What Darwin Never Knew
One hundred and fifty years later, scientists decode nature's greatest mysteries—a two-hour special.
Multimedia
-
Early Humans in Pop Culture
For 150 years, pop culture has offered distorted images of our ancestors.
-
Guess the Embryo
See if you can tell what four similar-looking embryos will become, and watch each develop.
-
Building Faces From Fossils
Paleoartist Viktor Deak works from casts of fossil skulls to put faces to Turkana Boy and other ancient hominids.
-
Depicting Our Ancestors
In this audio slide show, filmmaker Graham Townsley describes what it takes to bring ancient hominids to life.
-
The Zoo of You
In this interactive, see how closely parts of your body match those in other animals, from sharks to fruit flies.
Audio
-
Learning From Bonobos
When it comes to emotional intelligence, bonobos put the human world to shame.
-
Cooperative Apes
To understand human evolution, anthropologist Brian Hare is studying one of our close primate relatives, bonobos.
-
Evolution in Your Life
From flu to food—hear five researchers discuss how evolution affects your day-to-day life.
-
Big Thinkers on Evolution
Hear from five people who may change the way you think about Darwin and the world around you.
-
Caught in a Culture War
In a conflict about the teaching of evolution, journalist Laurie Lebo found herself at odds with her own family.
You need the Flash Player plug-in to view this content.





