AI Will Recreate the Daily Life of Ancient Humans for a Ural Museum
A neural network is being trained to visualize how ancient people looked, worked, and lived — making archaeology more immersive and accessible.
The State Historical Museum of the Southern Urals has launched an experiment to use artificial intelligence to reconstruct the everyday life of ancient humans. According to Zoya Valiakhmetova, the museum’s chief research specialist, the neural network is currently being trained with data about the appearance of ancient people, the types of tools they used, and their domestic routines.
The museum is already deeply integrated with digital technology. Residents of the Southern Urals can explore archaeological collections remotely in 3D format. Among the digitized exhibits are rare artifacts from caves near Ust-Katav, discovered in 1937 after limestone quarry explosions revealed chambers with mammoth-era remains. Archaeologist Sergey Bibikov, invited to study the site, later identified several Paleolithic landmarks in the region.
One highlight is the reconstruction of a rare burial from the Buranovskaya Cave, where researchers found a man interred with aphite pendants. Such Stone Age cave burials are exceptionally uncommon.
By integrating neural networks, the museum can go beyond simply displaying artifacts — it can bring them to life by creating immersive environments that vividly reimagine ancient eras. The technology offers visitors a more tangible connection to the past, transforming how historical knowledge is experienced.
A similar project in Kuzbass used neural networks to “revive” a Psittacosaurus and a woolly mammoth.
