RECONSTRUCT, REMODEL AND REINCARNATE: AN ARCHEOLOGICAL APPROACH TOWARDS FACIAL RECONSTRUCTION

Abstract

Severally injured, decapitated, and/or mutilated skeletal structures lead to the
difficulty in identification of mortal remains. Since the inception of forensic sciences and forensic
odontology it has posed a greater challenge in identification of the deceased through the
remains. Over the years, various techniques have been applied for the identification of
deceased individuals. Out of these techniques, the commonly used are the comparison of antemortem
and post-mortem data by using clinical records, radiographs, or DNA. Still the
identification of severely mutilated bodies poses a challenge for the forensic team. The advent
of the twentieth century brought a revolution in the field of facial reconstruction, as the
computers could completely change the methods of reconstruction. Forensic facial
reconstruction is art and science to recreate the antemortem appearance of an individual in
order to recognize and identify the decedent. Over the years, many techniques of FFR and
imaging modalities that provide the basic data for FFR have evolved. This poster depicts
different methods of facial reconstruction and its pragmatic use in the field of forensic
odontology.