First discovered in a cave in 1903, Cheddar Man was a dark-skinned, blue-eyed man who lived in Britain 10,000 years ago — but much of his life is a mystery.
Natural History MuseumCheddar Man’s skeleton and bust on display at the Natural History Museum’s Human Evolution gallery.
In 1903, workers excavating Gough’s Cave in England discovered the remains of a prehistoric man. Dating back 10,000 years to the Mesolithic Era, his skeleton revealed that he was part of a hunter-gatherer group in ancient Britain.
At the time, researchers assumed that the man, known as “Cheddar Man,” likely had fair hair and light eyes and skin. But in 2018, DNA analysis of Cheddar Man’s well-preserved remains revealed a surprising twist: Though he had blue eyes, he also had dark skin and hair, challenging previous assumptions about early Britons’ appearance.
Today, Cheddar Man’s reconstructed face and skeleton are displayed in London’s Natural History Museum, where they serve as a reminder of the diversity and migration patterns of early humans.
The Discovery Of Cheddar Man At Gough’s Cave
Natural History MuseumExcavations at Gough’s Cave in Cheddar Gorge.
In 1903, laborers digging a ditch in Gough’s Cave in Cheddar Gorge, England uncovered the ancient remains of a man. Dubbed “Cheddar Man,” it was the oldest complete skeleton ever found in Britain. Over the years, researchers have determined that he stood about five-foot-five and was in his early twenties when he died in Britain some 10,000 years ago.
The Cheddar Man lived during the Mesolithic Era, a time period defined by the use of small chipped stone tools.
“Cheddar Man belonged to a group of people who were mainly hunter gatherers,” Dr. Tom Booth, a postdoctoral researcher who worked with the Natural History Museum’s human remains collection, stated in a release from the museum. “They were hunting game as well as gathering seeds and nuts and living quite complex lives.”
The skeleton revealed a narrow pelvis and a hole in the skull. Researchers are unsure if this hole is from an injury or damage sustained during the excavation.
While Cheddar Man was not discovered alongside any other burial items, researchers have analyzed nearby Mesolithic burial sites to paint a picture of his lifestyle.
At Star Carr, a Mesolithic settlement that predates Cheddar Man by 1,000 years, researchers found red deer skull-caps, an engraved shale pendant, and stones such as amber, hematite, and pyrite.
Other nearby Mesolithic grave sites show the presence of mass cave burials.
“About a mile up the road from where Cheddar Man was found, there is another cave known as Aveline’s Hole which is one of the biggest Mesolithic cemeteries in Britain,” Dr. Booth explained. “Archaeologists found the remains of about 50 individuals, all deposited over a short period of 100-200 years.”
While mass burials were common in Mesolithic England, Cheddar Man was buried alone — and it’s not apparent why.
“He was recovered from sediment but it wasn’t clear whether he had been buried or just covered in sediment over time by natural mineral deposits in the cave,” said Dr. Booth. “So he could have been special, or he may just have curled up and died there.”
Over the years, the mystery surrounding Cheddar Man has sparked wild rumors, including that he was the earliest Englishman. The public also erroneously claimed that his history dated back 40,000 to 80,000 years.
However, DNA analysis in 2018 would not only shed more light on Cheddar Man’s origins, but also reveal his unexpected physical appearance.
DNA Analysis Reveals The Shocking Appearance Of The 10,000-Year-Old Man
Natural History MuseumThe bust of Cheddar Man, depicting his dark complexion and light blue eyes.
In the 1970s, researchers used radiocarbon dating to date the Cheddar Man back 10,000 years. However, it wasn’t until 2018 that researchers were able to thoroughly test Cheddar Man’s DNA.
Luckily, the cool conditions inside Gough’s Cave, as well as the mineral deposits Cheddar Man was buried in, preserved his DNA for thousands of years, giving researchers ample samples to test.
The team began by drilling a 2mm-diameter hole in his skull to extract bone powder. Then, after analyzing Cheddar Man’s genome using next-generation shotgun sequencing, the research team made a shocking discovery: While Cheddar Man had blue eyes, he also had dark brown to black skin, and dark curly hair.
Researchers had long assumed that humans adapted lighter skin shortly after they arrived in Europe some 45,000 years ago. This find suggested that the genes for pale skin evolved in Europe much later than previously believed. It also suggested skin color was not always reflective of geographic origin, as is often seen today.
“It really shows up that these imaginary racial categories that we have are really very modern constructions or very recent constructions, that really are not applicable to the past at all,” said Dr. Booth, according to a 2018 article from The Guardian.
Natural History MuseumThe skull of Cheddar Man.
Using Cheddar Man’s DNA, the research team collaborated with Kennis & Kennis Reconstructions to create a bust of his head. The reconstruction artists measured his skull before 3D-printing a model to share with the world.
“It’s a story all about migrations throughout history,” said bust artist Alfons Kennis, according to CTV News. “It maybe gets rid of the idea that you have to look a certain way to be from somewhere. We are all immigrants.”
What Are The Origins Of The Mysterious Cheddar Man?
Natural History MuseumCheddar Man’s skeleton.
With Cheddar Man’s DNA in hand, researchers determined that his ancestors likely originated in Africa before moving into the Middle East. Later, they traveled to Europe and then Britain using an ancient land bridge known as Doggerland. According to archaeologists, about 10 percent of people of British ancestry today are descended from this population.
Over time, light skin evolved in Europe in part thanks to the migrations of two groups in the thousands of years after Cheddar Man died: Near Eastern farmers, and pastoralists from the Pontic Steppe.
Through the years, European populations’ skin likely naturally selected to become lighter, as paler skin absorbs more UV light and vitamin D, which people living in cooler, cloudier climates would have required.
Today, Cheddar Man’s bust and skeleton is on display in the Human Evolution gallery at the Natural History Museum. Visitors can come face-to-face with the Cheddar Man himself and see just how his story rewrites what we thought we knew about early Britons.
Next, check out the family who had blue skin for hundreds of years. Then, check out the group of Canaanite descendants that scientists thought had been wiped out.
