STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN—Forensic artist Oscar Nilsson has made a new reconstruction of the face of an individual whose skeletal remains were recovered in the 1960s from the Vasa, a warship that sank in Stockholm harbor on its maiden voyage in 1628, according to a Live Science report. It had originally been thought that the skeleton had belonged to a man in his 40s, but a new genetic analysis has shown that the bones belonged to a woman who had blue eyes, blonde hair, and pale skin. Researchers now estimate the woman, dubbed “Gertrude,” was between the ages of 25 and 30 at the time of death. Nilsson used the same computed tomography scan of the skull as he did in his 2006 reconstruction of a man’s face, but he employed data on tissue thicknesses of modern Scandinavian and North European women to recreate the features. A new analysis of the cranium has also changed the shape of the nose and ears, while the younger age suggests the woman had fuller lips than had been shown in the previous reconstruction. Microscopic analysis of fabric pieces found near the remains, conducted by Anna Silwerulv of the Vasa Museum, suggests that the woman had been wearing a dark gray jacket and a bright red, tall hat resembling women’s traditional festive dress. For more, go to "History's 10 Greatest Wrecks...Mary Rose and Vasa."
