A few years ago I carved a human skull as a personal challenge to learn a little about human anatomy. It took a lot of work and I wasn’t completely happy with result. So when I received a commission to carve another one I did some more preparation by studying as many different photos of real human skulls.

I discovered that there is a huge range of differences and variances in the human skull. In fact, the closer you study them, the more differences you find. In other words, it’s hard to screw it up. As long as the basic proportions are correct, and the main features are present, your carving will look like a human skull. Give it a try. Here is a photo essay of the process.

I used bass wood glued up from three pieces 2.5″ thick. I dyed it to look like it was dug up from a grave.