improve the quality of facial reconstructions from the skull, efforts which have met with very limited success. Most recently, computerised methods for 3D facial reconstruction have been developed. These methods employ computer programs to transform laser-scanned 3D skull images into faces. Although the results are more reproducible than sculpted reconstructions, some subjectivity can remain in the 'pegging' of a composite facial image onto the digitised skull matrix. The use of such a standardised image will reduce the influence of the individual shape of each skull, which is after all fundamental to the person's appearance. Computerised methods may be repeatable, fast and precise, but as long as they employ the old data, the quality of the reconstruction will be undermined.
             Figure 4. The Sheffield facial reconstruction suite: laser scanner, PC server and Industrial graphics workstation.
             Facial reconstructions now employ color laser scanners and silicon graphics computer to capture 3D images of the skull (Figure 4). As the platform rotates (Figure 5) a 'wireframe' matrix is generated (Figure 6). Computed tomography (CT) scanning permits more accurate measurement of tissue depths (Figure 7). Large samples of tissue depth measurements can be collected, with associated attributes of age, sex, build and, where appropriate, ethnic group. A pilot study on the collection of tissue depth measurements from CT scans has been carried out by one of our team .Digitised images of facial features not predicted by the skull contours (nose, eyes and mouth) must be added by separate means to generate a wireframe face (Figure 8), onto which colour and texture can subsequently be rendered (Figure 9). If necessary, a skull can be reconstructed 'virtually' from the separately scanned parts (Figure 10).
             Left to right: Figure 6. A wireframe matrix of a skull shown at 32 x 32 resolution. Figure 7.Computed tomography (CT) scan of the head of a liv...