HAWKES] SKELETAL MEASUREMENTS, POINT BARROW ESKIMO 22$ 



The size of the skull was also found to be no exact criterion of 

 the capacity, due to the large variation in the thickness of the 

 parietal bones. One skull that appeared to be above the average 

 in size gave a capacity of only 1230 c.c., while another skull of 

 slightly less exterior measurement gave a capacity of 1330 c.c. 

 The variation appears greatest in male skulls. 



The capacity of the Point Barrow skulls as a whole is not as 

 great as that of the Central and Eastern Eskimo. The average 

 capacity of the male crania is 1426 c.c. as against 1563 c.c. for the 

 Southampton island Eskimo (Hrdlicka). The largest Point Barrow 

 skull has a capacity of 1610 c.c., so it will be seen that the capacity 

 is still large in the west, and that the head still maintains this dis 

 tinctly Eskimo character. The female average in this group is 

 about 1300 c.c., the general average being brought down to 1287 

 c.c. by one very small skull. The adolescent average of 1301.1 c.c. 

 is instructive in showing the close correlation between the female 

 and adolescent types, which is confirmed in other measurements. 



The cause for the large capacity of the Eskimo skull still remains 

 undiscovered. The superior inventiveness of this people is il 

 lustrated in their ingenious culture. The brain is said to show 

 good differentiation, but no signs of extraordinary mental powers 

 (Hrdlicka). The diameter of the foramen magnum is large, in 

 dicating a stout spinal cord, which may or may not have a direct 

 influence on the size of the brain. The large capacity of the infan 

 tile skulls, 1152.5 c.c., suggests that the large size of the brain is a 

 racial trait, and not acquired through the educative process of 

 their environment. 



Breadth of Face in Proportion to Breadth of Head. The Eskimo 

 of the central region and Greenland are characterized by a very broad 

 face in proportion to the breadth of head. The general proportion 

 is 1 02, ranging as high as 105 and 107 in individuals. Eighty- five 

 skulls from Smith sound, measured by Bessels, gave an average 

 head width of 133 and an average facial (bi-zygomatic) width of 136, 

 a proportion of 102. Unfortunately, in his long list of crania, 

 Bessels made no distinctions as to sex, and this is an important 

 difference, as may be observed in the following comparative table. 



