You are correct. True “Man-Roots” are hard to find and can be quite valuable. Growers have been ‘pruning’ roots for centuries to achieve the desired human shape.
When the ginseng plant (Panax family) enters dormancy in late fall, the roots are dug up and ‘clipped’ to form human-shapes. Since wild plants have been known to live well over 200 years, this allows plenty of time for growers & wild harvesters to shape the root as they wish. Patience is the key here.
I agree with ResponseAbility that this particular root was most likely grown in a mold or pruned. It’s just too perfect to be otherwise.
Every ginseng grower/digger that I’ve met have been most colorful in character, i.e. strongly independent, excellent outdoorsmen, hunters, fisherman, trappers and falsely called as eccentric or “crazy”. My kind of people! Bet your dad had lots of interesting stories.
My old man was dedicated to the oil fields and jobs here in PA. He worked many leases and picked the wild (or feral?) ginseng and we had a sort of hothouse at home. I really don’t know who he sold the stuff to, but I remember helping pick, fertilizing and cutting the stuff for years. He made a good buck between oil, ginseng and working in a steel mill. (And shooting cornfield cows {deer}.)