LONDON – The first modern Briton had dark skin and blue eyes, Londonscientists said on Wednesday, following groundbreaking DNA analysis of theremains of a man who lived 10,000 years ago.

Known as “Cheddar Man” after the area in southwest England where hisskeleton was discovered in a cave in 1903, the ancient man has been broughtto life through the first ever full DNA analysis of his remains.

In a joint project between Britain’s Natural History Museum and UniversityCollege London, scientists drilled a 2mm hole into the skull and extractedbone powder for analysis.

Their findings transformed the way they had previously seen Cheddar Man,who had been portrayed as having brown eyes and light skin in an earliermodel.

“It is very surprising that a Brit 10,000 years ago could have thatcombination of very blue eyes but really dark skin,” said the museum’sChris Stringer, who for the past decade has analysed the bones of peoplefound in the cave.

The findings suggest that lighter pigmentation being a feature ofpopulations of northern Europe is more recent than previously thought.

Cheddar Man’s tribe migrated to Britain at the end of the last Ice Age andhis DNA has been linked to individuals discovered in modern-day Spain,Hungary and Luxembourg.

Selina Brace, a researcher of ancient DNA at the museum, said the caveenvironment Cheddar Man was found in helped preserve his remains.

“In the cave you have a really nice, cool, dry, constant environment, andthat basically prevents the DNA from breaking down,” she said.

A bust of Cheddar Man, complete with shoulder-length dark hair and shortfacial hair, was created using 3D printing.

It took close to three months to build the model, with its makers using ahigh-tech scanner which had been designed for the International SpaceStation.

Alfons Kennis, who made the bust with his brother Adrie, said the DNAfindings were “revolutionary”.

“It’s a story all about migrations throughout history,” he told Channel 4in a documentary to be aired on February 18.

“It maybe gets rid of the idea that you have to look a certain way to befrom somewhere. We are all immigrants,” he added.