When we see a reconstructed face from 75,000 years ago, we apply that same recognition system to an unfamiliar input.

The result is a specific form of response: this is a face, but not quite like our faces.

The brow ridge is prominent in a way ours are not.

The nose is different.

The forehead recedes.

And yet — it is a face.

And the recognition system responds to it as such.

This response is not a scientific finding.