PREVIEW

The true face of Beethoven has been revealed - almost 200 years after his death. Researchers have created the first 3D reconstruction of Beethoven's head using skull analysis.

The model shows Beethoven with dark green eyes, thinning grey hair, and a penetrating gaze. His expression appears brooding, with deep frown lines, matching historical portraits.

Cicero Moraes, the Brazilian 3D designer, found Beethoven's face "somewhat intimidating". Moraes worked with historical photographs of Beethoven's skull, taken in 1863. The reconstruction used data from skull measurements taken in 1888.

Moraes built the 3D model by combining facial approximations and a virtual donor's tomography. Soft tissue thickness data from living Europeans helped shape Beethoven's face. The model also includes subjective features like hairstyle, based on a famous 1820 portrait. AI tools refined the finer facial details of the reconstruction.