.Vo/cs mid (\)i)ini('ii/.s 



195 



PRK-HISTORIC BONK DISEASE. 

 Dr. W. Wrii^ht has contributed the results of an examination 

 of eis^hty pre-historic East Yorkshire skulls (in the Mortimer 

 collection) to the 'Birmingham Medical Review.' The bone 

 disease usually took the form of tubercles and ridg-es on the skull. 

 The bronze-age skull here figured, which is from a barrow on 

 Painsthorpe Wold, shows a marked thickening: of the frontal and 

 parietal bones as tliey hound the coronal suture, and symmetrical 



nodosities on either side of the anterior part of the sag-ittal 

 suture. One skull showed conditions sug-gestive of syphilis, 

 whilst other deformities were due to injury. One clear case of 

 fracture was noted, on the frontal bone above the rig-ht orbit, 

 which had healed with but little deformity. Among-st other- 

 bones in the collection several interesting" features were noticed. 

 The so-called osteoarthritis of the spine had apparently been 

 a common complaint. This condition has been described' 'as if 

 the bony matter had been poured in a stream over larger surfaces 

 ot a bone and then cong-ealed.' 



TEETH OF EARLY MAX. 

 The excellent condition o( the teeth in pre-historic skulls has 

 long- been envied by those living- in more 'civilised' times. 

 Dr. Wrig-ht reports that o\' all the teeth which he examined, and 

 many of the skulls had tiieir complement, only one was found to 

 be carious. The occurrence of alveolar abscesses was indicated 

 in five cases. It is pointed out that the comparative immunity 

 of the molars is seeming^ly due to the rapid wearing- down oi 

 their crowns to a flat surface by the dirt and g-rit mixed with the 

 coarsely-milled grain, and by the pulps being- quickly calcified. 



1903 June I. 



