The following notes deal in the briefest possible manner with the more important observations to be made on human bones; and it is conceivable that some such records might be obtained under circumstances precluding the observer from securing or removing the actual specimens, and even in instances where only a very brief period is available for inspecting them. It is convenient to arrange the observations under the following separate headings:—

1. The circumstances attending the death of the individual should be first investigated, and observations concerning the mode and locality of interment should be recorded (cf. Professor Tylor’s Schedule, under ‘Funeral Rites’).

2. The general condition of the specimen next demands attention. This is to some extent dependent upon circumstances referred to in the preceding section. From the texture and preservation of the actual bony substance, a rough estimate may be formed as to the lapse of time since the death of the individual. The occurrence of the skull alone, or at a distance from the remainder of the skeleton, should be noted.

3. The greater weight and size, as well as the greater prominence of the brow-ridges and ridges at the back of the skull, serve to distinguish the male sex, but in many cases the determination of sex is almost impossible.

As regards age, skulls are conveniently described as immature, adult or senile. Immature skulls lack the full complement of teeth or of sockets for these, and a deep cleft is seen to cross the base of the skull about an inch in front of the large hole (foramen magnum) for the spinal cord. Upon the attainment of maturity this cleft is obliterated, by the fusion of its margins. In senile crania, the sutural lines on the surface are almost entirely obliterated, and the jaws are toothless and much reduced in size and prominence.

4. The skull may be deformed. It is important to attempt to distinguish deformation produced during life (either artificially or otherwise) from that determined by the weight of superincumbent soil after interment. Artificial deformation is manifested in most cases by flattening of the forehead, or of the back of the skull, or of both. But posthumous deformation is quite irregular, the face is often involved as well as the brain-case, there is often extreme flattening from side to side, and the bones are usually fragile and tend to fall apart.

5. Trephine-holes, indicative of enterprise in operative surgery, should be noted. The regularity of contour and the size of the hole often gives the clue to its real nature. It must be remembered that, in the process of exhumation, injuries closely resembling the foregoing operative wounds may be received by skulls, and therefore the circumstances of exhumation demand enquiry in this connection. Some skulls are found to have been incised or engraved with decorative patterns after death.

6. Craniological descriptions deal with the appearances presented by skulls in each of the five normal positions or aspects depicted in Fig. 1.

In the first view or aspect (Fig. 1, B) the general form of the skull is shewn, and in proportions the cranial case may be either elongated or rotund; or again, if elongated, it may be elliptical (with no great difference in form between front and back), ovoid (when the hinder end is the broader), or rhomboid (lozenge or diamond-shaped).

In Fig. 1, C, the profile line, and its modification by prominent brow-ridges or jaws, claims attention. In Fig. 1, D, the general form of the eye (orbital aperture) and nose (nasal aperture), as well as the relative breadth of the face, are considered. Fig. 1, E, shows the palate, and the number and forms of the teeth are studied from this point of view. In Fig. 1, A, the form of the transverse cranial arc, and any irregularities, such as flattening or the production of a keeled (scaphoid) appearance, should be noted.

7. The lower jaw is studied independently. The prominence of the chin, the squareness of the angle, the stoutness of the whole bone, and the number and characters of the teeth are the chief points to which attention is directed.

8. Cranial measurements are made with callipers and a flexible steel or tape measure. These objects, as well as a graduated two-meter rod used for measuring stature or long bones, are supplied in a travelling case by Messrs. Hermann of Zürich, who have made them to Professor Martin’s designs. The whole outfit costs about £4, but the instruments can be obtained separately. Messrs. Hermann also make a modified form of the callipers, known as Flower’s Craniometer (cf. Fig. 2). Measurements are recorded in millimeters, in which the various callipers, etc., are graduated. The latter instruments may have the forms represented in Fig. 2 (Flower’s Craniometer) or Fig. 3, in which are shown the exact positions of the instruments in measuring the length of the skull.

The chief measurements may be now enumerated in order of importance:—

9. Measurements of the long bones of the limbs. These are best made by means of a graduated rod with fixed and movable limbs, resembling a large pair of callipers. Such a rod is supplied (as indicated above) by Messrs. Hermann. The bones to be measured are six in number for each side of the body, viz.:—those of the upper arm and thigh (humerus and femur); then two for the forearm (called radius and ulna, the former being the shorter); and two for the leg (called tibia and fibula, the former, or shin-bone, being the larger). The extreme or maximum length is measured in each case, excepting those of the femur and tibia.

Immature limb-bones are recognised by the line which demarcates the extreme ends, or epiphyses, from the shaft (or diaphysis). Sexual differences are chiefly indicated by greater length, stoutness, and also by the development of osseous ridges in male bones.

10. The measurements of the long bones are used in estimating the stature. Special notice is to be paid to individuals of giant or of dwarf stature. In this connection particular mention should be made in the following instances:—

11. Adult skulls will also excite attention when the horizontal circumference (measured in accordance with the directions provided above) is greater than 56 cm., or less than 47 cm.