Roman-Era Faces Reconstructed in Budapest Exhibition Reveal Ancient Lives
The Aquincum Roman Museum in Budapest has reconstructed the faces of 16 Roman-era inhabitants using modern methods including DNA analysis, archaeology, and anthropology for an exhibition titled 'Once We Were Like You.' The exhibition, on view until October 31, 2026, and again from spring 2027, presents realistic facial models with individual life stories based on skulls from Aquincum's heyday in the middle and later imperial periods. Genetic analysis determined skin, hair, and eye color, as well as freckles and health conditions. The exhibition creators gave the nearly 2,000-year-old inhabitants fictional names and assigned them likely professions and biographies based on authentic historical foundations and skull analysis results. Co-curators Loránt Vass and Péter Vámos emphasized the goal of bringing these ancient individuals closer to modern people, noting similarities in professions and problems across the millennia.
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