This woman represents a population of early Homo sapiens which lived in North Africa around 300,000 years ago. Remains of theirs, which have been found at the site of Jebel Irhoud in what is now Morocco, may represent the oldest Homo sapiens specimens yet discovered. However, their skull morphology shows a mixture of “modern” and “primitive” traits, with the brow ridges being more prominent and the braincase more elongated than in modern humans today.
This is actually the second time I’ve drawn a woman from Jebel Irhoud. I felt my first attempt didn’t capture the “archaic” quality of their facial features very well, and I think I’ve done a better job of that here.