Archaeologists found the remains of four Roman-era men during construction-related excavations in Musselburgh, Scotland, in 2010. Their heads had been separated from their bodies after death. A new digital facial reconstruction offers a glimpse of what one of them may have looked like during his lifetime.

The reconstruction will be shown alongside the man’s skull in “Roman Scotland: Life on the Edge of Empire,” an exhibition at the National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh. The exhibition is scheduled to run from November 14, 2026, to April 18, 2027.

Researchers estimate that the man died between 140 and 165 C.E., in his early 50s. The reconstruction portrays him with brown eyes and graying dark hair. Forensic artist Chris Rynn drew on an osteoarchaeological assessment, isotope analysis by specialists at Durham University, and ancient DNA research by the University of York and Harvard Medical School. The DNA helped establish hair, eye and skin color, while the reconstruction presents several possible hairstyles.

The man lived near the Roman fort of Inveresk, but a condition affecting his right elbow may have made it difficult to wield a sword. Archaeologist John H. Reid, who was not involved in the research, told Live Science that he may have held a noncombat role, such as clerk, or used his left hand to handle a weapon.

His skeleton also bears evidence of a broken nose and a fractured rib, both healed before his death. A bone growth around his right elbow was likely caused by septic arthritis. Wear on his teeth suggests he may have used his mouth to pick up objects when his arm’s mobility was limited.

A 2020 study of strontium isotopes in his remains indicated that he likely spent his childhood in southern Britain, far from where he was buried. Of the four people found at the Musselburgh site, two appear to have come from England, one from Scotland and one from the Mediterranean. The researchers said the burials’ shared rite did not point to a single geographic origin.

The man was buried on his back, with his feet and shoulders raised above his torso. His head was placed to the right of his body, facing inward, and cuts on the bones show that it was severed near the base of the neck. No grave goods were recovered, though his skeleton was among the best-preserved at the site.

Archaeologists have found more than 500 Roman-era decapitation burials across the United Kingdom. The reasons remain uncertain, and proposed explanations include execution, ritual practice and efforts to prevent the dead from returning. Scholars have not reached a firm consensus.

Fraser Hunter, a curator at National Museums Scotland, said the reconstruction provides a way to imagine one of Inveresk’s inhabitants, while acknowledging that his exact appearance cannot be known. The Musselburgh burials are considered unusual for their early date and the varied origins of the individuals buried there.

Sources: Smithsonian Magazine.