178 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [boll. 52 



"The fossil skulls of Lagoa Santa present, with about one exception, 

 a remarkable uniformity. The 14 skulls of Copenhagen, that of Rio de 

 Janeiro, and that of London, all have the same aspect, aU are very high, 

 very long and have a roundish [should probably read oval — A. H.] 

 vault. The face is of medium breadth, the same as the orbits and 

 the nose. The front is not sloping, but rather somewhat pyramidal, 

 the supraorbital ridges are well-developed, the interorbital part is 

 broad and strong. The skulls are very prognathic, the subnasal part 

 especially. The bizygomatic diameter is large and the temporal 

 root of the zygomse is very strong, producing a considerable relief 

 above the mastoideal region. The skulls are of a medium size, but 

 their state of preservation does not permit measurements of capacity, 

 of which a notion can be obtained only from the various measure- 

 ments. 



"The lower jaws are strong, with a well-developed chin and generally 

 with large genial apophyses. 



"According to the anthropologic terminology, the skulls of Lagoa 

 Santa are dolichocephalic, hypsistenocephalic, prognathic, meso- 

 facial, megaseme, mesorhinic, and phenozygous. The type corre- 

 sponds perfectly to that of the Papuans, a fact already pointed to 

 for the skull of Rio de Janeiro by de Quatrefages, but still more pro- 

 nounced when one regards the complete series instead of the sole 

 specimen which he knew. The uniformity of these skulls supports 

 the theory of that savant concerning the existence of a primitive 

 race, spreading over the larger part of South America and mixed with 

 other elements (brachycephalic). 



''The only atypical skull from the Lagoa Santa caves is brachy- 

 cephalic, but in the remainder of its characteristics, corresponds quite 

 well with the rest of the collection. 



"The divers bones of the trunk present only a mediocre interest 

 and the only remarkable thing is the frequence of transitor}' lumbo- 

 sacral vertebra (three times for six sacra). 



"The bones of the members indicate small or medium stature, but 

 considerable strength, a new point of resemblance to the Paj)uans. 

 The oleocranon cavity of the humerus is in many instances perforated. 

 The ulnse are somewhat incurved. The femora show a well-developed 

 linea aspera as well as the third trochanter. The tibiae are very 

 platycnemic." 



As to the antiquity of the remains, Hansen adduces (Danish and 

 French text) that — 



"The human remains were in no case so associated with the bones 

 of animals that one could reach a conclusion with absolute certainty 

 as to their contemporaneity with either a Tertiary or a Quaternary 

 fauna. In the absence of all antiquities one can also know nothing 



