The receding hair reflects an inference about age-related hair loss in a man assessed to be in his fifties.

The gray hair is consistent with that age.

The hazel eyes represent a probabilistic choice, a common eye color in Northwestern European populations of this period.

The reconstruction is presented as a probabilistic representation, a face that captures what research suggests is plausible, not a photograph of the past.

The English Heritage materials presenting the reconstruction are careful to note that it is a digital facial reconstruction, not a literal portrait.

The result: a mild-looking man with wrinkles, the weathered features of outdoor physical labor, and an expression that is neither hostile nor welcoming but simply present.