THE DESCRIPTION OF A NEANDERTHALOID AUSTRA-

Description of a Neanderthaloid Australian Skull
to the frontal pole of the cerebral hemisphere, compared with 26 mm. in
No. 792.
In many respects the nasal region exhibits typical aboriginal features to
an average degree. Below the well-marked nasion, there is a second depression
which corresponds with the upper margin of the projection of the nose in the
living state. The nasal bones together present the usual saddle-shaped appearance.
The medial borders of these bones which are partly synostosed, project
moderately, showing a tendency to bridge formation, more pronounced than
in many Australian skulls. On the other hand, No. 795 presents a well-marked
bridge without any sign of a nasal depression. In some cases the nasal bones
besides being on the whole small, narrow to such an extent superiorly that the
frontal processes of the maxillae are separated by only a narrow interval
(4 mm. in No. 620). In R. 87 (aboriginal child) the processes meet superiorly
behind the nasals.
The lower margin of the apertura piriformis presents the usual aboriginal
features. The anterior nasal spine is poorly developed. There is a well-marked
fossa praenasalis on each side below. This is limited anteriorly by a crest
("crista praenasalis"), which is continuous with the lateral sharp boundary
of the apertura piriformis. Posteriorly this fossa is bounded by a second crest
("margo infranasalis"), which runs laterally towards the commencement of
the inferior concha (fig. 6).
In No. 792 the lower limits of these two crests are indistinct, but in
B. 10510 (Australian Museum) they converge towards one another and terminate
in the spina nasalis anterior. In this way the "crista praenasalis"
forms the inferior boundary of the apertura piriformis, and the fossa praenasalis
is situated in the floor of the nasal cavity. In the majority of the Roth
skulls the crista praenasalis becomes indistinct above the roots of the incisor
teeth. Examples of a distinctly bifid anterior nasal spine are seen in Nos. 2355
and 2356 (Medical School Museum). The spine is prolonged into a median
crest between the incisors in No. 477 (Medical School Museum).
The outstanding feature of the nasal region is that the skull falls into the
leptorrhine class, the nasal index being 47-2. In his Challenger Report,
Turner (19) says that all observers agree on the platyrrhine character of
Australian skulls. Some are mesorrhine, but the leptorrhine condition is
practically unknown, though Turner's authentic Mudgee skull was of this
type. Nevertheless, as shown above, certain features, e.g. the well-marked
nasal depression, the depressed nasion above this, the narrow nasal bones,
poorly marked bridge and the fossa praenasalis, are typically Australian
features.
By Cameron's method (4), the naso-orbito-alveolar index was measured on
the projection of the norma facialis and this placed the skull in his group III
which includes Australian aboriginal, Negro and Melanesian skulls.
The orbit in No. 792 has a shape intermediate between the large approximately
circular type and the vertically compressed type.
3-2
35