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The faces of three ancient Egyptian men who lived up to 2,797 years ago have been reconstructed using genetic data extracted from their mummified remains.

It is the first time such a technique has been used on human DNA of that age, Daily Mail reports.

The trio came from Abusir el-Meleq, an ancient city on a floodplain to the south of Cairo, and are estimated to have been buried some time between 780 BC and 5 AD.

Their DNA was first sequenced in 2017 by scientists at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History in Tübingen, Germany.

That genome reconstruction has now enabled researchers at Parabon NanoLabs, a DNA technology firm based in the US state of Virginia, to create 3D models of the mummies' faces with the help of a process known as forensic DNA phenotyping.

This uses genetic analysis to predict genetic ancestry, eye colour, hair colour, skin colour, freckling, and face shape in individuals from any ethnic background.

'This is the first time comprehensive DNA phenotyping has been performed on human DNA of this age,' Parabon said in a statement.

The firm's experts found that the three Egyptian men, who belonged to an ancient Nile community and are estimated to have lived between 2,023 and 2,797 years ago, had light brown skin with dark eyes and hair.

Interestingly, their genetic makeup was closer to that of modern individuals in the Mediterranean or the Middle East than it was to modern Egyptians, the company said.