Visual Science created an app, called VRScience, so you can meet scientifically accurate faces of people who lived 30,000 years ago.

Imagine being able to stare at the face of your great, great, great, great etc. grandmother. Well, if your heritage is northern or eastern European, a new VR app can help you do just that.

Virtual Reality is now offering us the chance to get closer and more personal than ever with ancient homo sapiens. The app from Visual Science studio can take us back 30,000 years in time.

The app, called VRScience, shows scientifically accurate faces of Sungir people. Although these people are the ancestors of northern and eastern Europeans, back in ancient times, they lived in Russia during the Ice Age.

“Cutting-edge science combined with computer graphics is a powerful tool for promoting science among children and inspiring young people to learn about history and the natural world. The Sungir site is a global treasure. Special clothing and decorative elements suggest an amazingly high level of cultural development among Homo sapiens living 30,000 years ago. By visualizing these details with scientific rigor, we’re able to share Sungir with the widest possible audience,” said Ivan Konstantinov, CEO of Visual Science.

It’s Like Looking in a Mirror

In the mid-twentieth century, archaeologists discovered the site of the Sungir people. It’s estimated to be between 28 and 30,000 years old. Despite the harsh conditions, the Sungir people were technically and culturally advanced in many ways. This reflects in the 80,000 household and cultural artifacts the archaeologists found at the site.

The VRScience app takes into account laser scans and high-definition photos of Sungir siblings. Two skulls provided the mold used for 3D modeling the Sungir people. As well as 3D modeling software, facial reconstruction techniques were also crucial.

The VRScience app and video explains the process involved in creating VR faces for us to view, from reconstructing soft tissue to the finished 3D portrait. Modern day people around the world are now bearing witness to the impressive details of the app:

“I like Sungir VR-animation because the reconstruction was made with high precision and attention to details. The physiognomy of the children, shown in the visualization, recalls Dolni Vestonice 15 — remains found at upper paleolithic site in the Czech Republic,” said Professor Jiri Svoboda, Sc.D., Head of Research Centre for Palaeolithics and Paleoanthropology at the Institute of Archaeology of the Czech Academy of Sciences

Supporting the reconstruction, and the hard work which has gone into developing the app, are RAS Institute of Ethnology and Anthropology and the All-Russian Science Festival.

Museums and schools around the world can access the app for free. It’s possible to do this by using the VRScience Android app.

It is compatible with Google Cardboard and compatible headsets at 4K resolution. If you don’t have access to Google Cardboard, then you can instead watch a 360-degree video on any device.

Don’t forget to check out the other VRScience experiences either, such as learning about the Zika virus.

Source: VRScout