ANTHROPOLOGICAL MATERIALS 85 



pecially those in out-of-the-way places where foreign cultural 

 influence has had little or no effect on their behavior or cultural 

 objects, may require considerable care to remove them to a base 

 camp, and to protect them in transit by expert packing to guard 

 against damage or destruction by such agencies as moths, 

 beetles, borers, dampness, and warping. 



Here again we must emphasize the fact that except in rare 

 cases the specimens have little scientific merit unless accompanied 

 by a detailed record. Such record must include the locality, in 

 sufficient detail so that it can be located on modern, large-scale 

 maps, the name of the tribe, and the function and use of the 

 specimen in relation to the culture. 



Collections of human remains of use to physical anthropology, 

 and which are readily transportable, include the skull and other 

 parts of the skeleton, the brain, and hair samples. When such 

 remains are encountered, and there are neither local taboos against 

 their removal nor official prohibitions against their collection and 

 shipment, it is highly desirable that they be saved for scientific 

 study. Bones should be packed in stout containers, using dry 

 grass, excelsior, or shredded paper as packing material. Brains 

 can be collected ordinarily only by those with medical training. 

 Thej'- may be preserved in 10 percent formalin solution, sur- 

 rounded with cotton or cloth, and sealed in metal containers. 

 Hair samples should be placed in separate envelopes. 



The scientific usefulness of these again depends largely upon 

 the record obtained by the collector, which should include as 

 many as possible of the following items (listed in the order of 

 their importance) : Locality, tribe, sex and age if available, 

 weight of brain upon removal, and region of body from which 



