274 RACE HEAD-FORMS AKD THEIR 



to the eye afforded by engraving and wood-cut is abundantly appreci- 

 ated by the modern anthropologist. By means of an accurate pencil, 

 with the economical facilities of the wood-engraver, the most charac- 

 teristic specialities of race, in physiognomy, form, or arts ; or the 

 distinctive peculiarities of any well-marked cranium : are easily repro- 

 duced, and introduced as part of the text. 



Yet even this time-honored method, thougb it has stood the test of 

 ages in a way none other has done, is not absolutely to be relied on. 

 There is always a danger, on the one hand, of the di'afisman slighting 

 the essential niceties of detail, and so losing the most characteristic 

 features; or, on the other hand, of the enthusiastic theorist exagger- 

 ating supposed typical characteristics; or imagining in the object of 

 his study the preconceived features he ig in search of. 



The history of the " Scioto-Mound skull," — most remarkable among 

 the crania of the American " Mound Builders," — supplies an interesting 

 illustration of the difficulties attendant on graphic representation of 

 type-forms. The first volume of the '' Smithsonian Contributions to 

 Knowledge," in which Messrs. Squier and Davis presented to the world 

 the fruits of their researches among the mounds of the great Mississippi 

 valley, is illustrated with so much artistic skill, that the reader might 

 not unreasonably repose implicit faith in their views of the remarkable 

 skull, producesd in evidence of the physical characteristics of the race, 

 to whose monuments and art-workmanship the volume is devoted. 

 The idea of a pre-Indian race, of a higher type, and superior mechanical 

 and artistic skill to the forest-tribes of the New World, had a charm 

 surpassing that of the rude Troglodytes and Flint-folk of Europe's 

 prehistoric ages; and hence *' the counterfeit presentment'' of the old 

 Mound Builders has left an impression on the American mind, not 

 likely to yield to anything but the most incontrovertible evidence 

 conflicting with the theories for which it has furnished a basis. 



Apart from any theory, it is a remarkable example of a cranium of 

 extreme brachycephalic type, approaching very nearly to a correspond- 

 ence in length, breadth and height; and is justly prized as one of the 

 most valuable objects in the Morton Collection of the Academy of 

 Sciences at Philadelphia. Its facial angle, internal capacity, and most 

 characteristic measurements, are recorded by Dr, E. H. Davis, and have 

 been repeatedly turned to account in discussing the significance of this 

 interesting discovery. When brought into comparison with corres- 

 ponding measurements of a skull of markedly dolichocaphalie proper- 



