Early Britons Had Dark Skin And Curly Hair, Research Claims

Most people have gotten used to the idea that the British Isles have always been populated with light-skinned, straight-haired humans that are predominantly found in today’s UK. However, research indicates that this was just not the case. By examining ancient skeletal remains, it was recently concluded that the earliest Britons actually had dark skin and curly hair.

The skeleton was dubbed “Cheddar Man” in reference to the place it was discovered, which was a cave in the village of Cheddar, CNN reports. This specimen is the oldest to have been found in Britain, so far, having been dated at over 10,000 years old.

This puts the owner of the skeleton at around the same time as the last wave of migrations following the Ice Age, which saw early humans coming to Europe and eventually, Britain. As such, many of today’s British citizens can directly trace their lineage all the way to the same people and tribes that “Cheddar Man” most likely belonged to.

Before deeper analysis into the remains was conducted, it was thought that the ancient individual had fair skin and hair. This was a perfectly logical conclusion, given how the current residents of the isles turned out.

Thanks to new DNA tests, however, this assumption was overturned. Even more interesting is the fact that the ancient human might have actually possessed blue eyes, The Washington Post reports. According to Selina Brace, a specialist in ancient DNA at the Natural History Museum, the sample was obtained using the subject’s bones.

“If the body was deposited in a good environment, where there was a cool and constant temperature, then the petrous bone is a good place to find useful ancient DNA,” Brace said.

Using facial reconstruction analysis and the latest 3D-printing technology, the scientists were also able to produce a reasonable representation of “Cheddar Man” as he would have looked. The result is staggeringly different compared to how most UK residents now appear.