Hilda - a female druid, "risen from the dead" thanks to scientists

A Scottish researcher, using the skull of a female druid, reconstructed her head and face in a 3D wax model. It is believed that the old woman, known as Hilda, lived on the Scottish island of Stornoway and she was already over 60 when she passed away.

Her life passed in the Iron Age. A report on the Dundee University website explains that the skull was "brought back to life" by Karen Fleming, a graduate student in forensic medicine and face recognition.

In her article, Karen explained that she restored Hilda from measurements of an ancient skull, which was stored in the Anatomy Museum of the University of Edinburgh. Hilda is listed as one of six "druids that were transferred to the Edinburgh Phrenological Society in 1833."

Karen noted that Hilda was an excellent site for restoration. “When examining the skull, we realized that she had lost all her teeth while she was alive. Considering how people ate at that time, there is nothing surprising. More likely, something else. Considering that the average women were barely thirty years old, then our heroine is long-lived. She’s more than 60 years old. "- the student clarifies.

Studies of all the archaeological remains of ancient peoples, as a rule, show that people who belonged to the upper strata of society in a social hierarchy, ate more varied food and lived twice as long as their fellow tribesmen. This is clearly seen in the example of the ancient Peruvian people, who lived 600 years ago. To know them, in addition to good nutrition, had artificially elongated skulls.

Scientists could not determine the date of birth of Hilda by her skull. However, they suggested that the woman passed away between 55 BC and 400 AD, and put forward a version of its Celtic origin.

Scottish scholars know a way to recreate historical figures in 3D. In 2016, the BBC service announced that a group of historians had digitally restored the image of Robert Bruce's face almost 700 years after his death. Scottish King Robert Bruce is perhaps best remembered for his victory over the British at the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314.

Druids were ancient priests among the Celtic peoples. They are usually represented as magi, dressed in white robes, resting on a staff. There are few convincing and unambiguous arguments for their existence. Even less news of female druids. The famous hero of Celtic myths Fingal, or rather Finn McCool, grew up with a female druid. There is also information about them in ancient Roman writings recorded by Flavius ​​Vopisk, which describes the conversations between the Emperor Diocletian and the female Druids.

Watch the video: Face of Iron Age female druid recreated (May 2024).