20 
THE UPNOR ELEPHANT 
The axis (fig. 36) , which likewise may be compared with a specimen belonging 
to E. meridionalis (B.M. 27872, fig. 3 d), shows again a slight difference in proportions, 
and, of the two, has a rather more slender neural arch. While both the atlas and 
axis are each of them a little larger than the corresponding bones of E. meridionalis, 
they are not so to the extent that might be expected in an animal of such remark- 
able size in the rest of its skeleton. 
Fig. 3. — Atlas (a) and axis ( b ) of the Upnor elephant compared with the corresponding bones of E. meridionalis 
(c, d ). i nat. size. 
Of the other vertebrae the most striking point is the unusual angle at which 
the neural spines are placed, both in respect to the individual vertebra and to the 
backbone itself. There is, in various species, some variation in the curve along the 
back that is formed by the tips of the neural spines. Dietrich has illustrated 
diagrammatically these curves for E. africanus, E. primigenius, and E. maximus. 
From lack of sufficient material the curve for E. antiquus has been so far unknown, 
