The face of Yde Girl was reconstructed by medical artist Richard
Neave in 1992. The task was daunting, because
the mummy had been found 100 years earlier and had dried out so much that
it was half its original size. The medical artist would have to rely on
others to help
him recreate the face.
First, the pathologist took
another look at Yde Girl and discovered a small stab wound at the base of
her throat. Apparently she had been stabbed at the time she was strangled.
Because of the peaceful look her face and the lack of defensive wounds on
her one hand (the other was not recovered), the pathologist speculated
that she may have killed while she was unconscious (in other words, she
may have been drugged).
Then,
information from the CT scan was used to create an image of her skull--as
it originally would have appeared. From this information, Richard Neave
prepared a polystyrene skull. Muscle structures were added. Finally, a wax
head was prepared. Yde Girl with her blue eyes and high forehead was
reborn. Considering the indignity of her discovery in 1897, the
reconstruction was the least that could have been done. It also makes her
appear to be a real person, not like the
monster that was discovered over 100 years ago.
You can read more about the
making of Yde Girl's reconstruction in Richard Neave's book, Making
Faces. He does this for a living and his book makes fascinating
reading (and viewing, since it includes many photographs).
