The sculptural reconstruction of the face is based on the skull of a woman, which was discovered during the research of mound 22 of the Solyony Dol burial ground (Bredinsky district, Chelyabinsk region). The burial ground was studied in 2006–2010 by an expedition of the Chelyabinsk State University under the leadership of Ilya Lyubchansky. The research yielded paleoanthropological material from two male and three female skeletons, dated to the late 2–4 centuries AD.
Mound 22 contained two grave pits. A skeleton of a young woman was found in the second pit, located in the central part of the mound. The woman was 25–35 years old at the time of her death.
The anthropologist Alexey Nechvaloda carried out a number of skull reconstructions of Bronze Age and Early Iron Age monuments for the exhibition and projects of the “Arkaim” Museum-Reserve. The reconstruction of the physical appearance of people who lived in the distant past begins with the determination of age, sex and individual features of the person under study. Anthropologists determine age by tooth abrasion and cranial sutures, as well as by the results of the study of the facial skeleton.
The next stage is the restoration of the external appearance based on the skull. This technique, which continues to be perfected today, was developed by the famous anthropologist Mikhail Gerasimov. He revealed the dependence between the structure of bones and the thickness of muscles on them. The work is completed by reproduction of hairstyle and clothes according to historical data. A mold, removed from the bust, is used to make plaster or plastic copies, and the skull that was used is returned to the repository. Today, the results of research by Mikhail Gerasimov, his students and followers are widely used in museum practice, historical reconstructions, plastic surgery and forensics.
The result of the reconstruction is a sculptural bust of a woman with high cheekbones. She wears padlock-shaped patterned earrings, and her hair is combed back and braided into a plait. On her head is a tight-fitting cap with ornaments on the edges and on the seam. The dress with a slit on the chest has a standing collar with a clasped plate fibula placed horizontally.
