Genetics First modern Britons had 'dark to black' skin, Cheddar Man DNA analysis reveals The genome of Cheddar Man, who lived 10,000 years ago, suggests that he had blue eyes, dark skin and dark curly hair A forensic reconstruction of Cheddar Man’s head, based on the new DNA evidence and his fossilised skeleton. Photograph: Channel 4The first modern Britons, who lived about 10,000 years ago, had “dark to black” skin, a groundbreaking DNA analysis of Britain’s oldest complete skeleton has revealed. The fossil, known as Cheddar Man, was unearthed more than a century ago in Gough’s Cave in Somerset. The team homed in on genes known to be linked to skin colour, hair colour and texture, and eye colour. However, Cheddar Man had “ancestral” versions of all these genes, strongly suggesting he would have had “dark to black” skin tone, but combined with blue eyes.

Source: The Guardian February 07, 2018 06:01 UTC