Virtual reconstruction of cranial remains : the H. Heidelbergensis, Kabwe 1 fossil

Human skeletal remains and fossils are often fragmented and distorted, limiting further research. Thus, reconstruction has long been used to restore the original morphology of specimens and enable subsequent research. With advances in computing and imaging, virtual reconstruction approaches are increasingly being applied to this task. Thus, models of fragmentary remains are increasingly being reconstructed from medical images, using visualization software and geometric morphometric techniques to repair defects and restore symmetry. In this chapter we review some virtual reconstruction techniques and provide a description of CT based virtual reconstruction applied to a fossil hominin, the Kabwe 1 cranium. This specimen is dated from 150 - 250 thousand years ago and was reconstructed to enable further biomechanical research, however the approaches and tools used to make the reconstruction are directly applicable to more recent skeletal remains.