ABSTRACT
Objective To analyze the characteristics and variation of occipital protuberance and occipital bunning of Chinese Holocene population. Methods Based on 275 adult male skulls, Neolithic Age ( 49 cases ), Bronze and Iron Age (171 cases) and modern (55 cases), the occipital protuberance and occipital bunning were divided into several categories, and the occurrence rates were analyzed and compared among different time periods. Results The characteristics and variation of occipital protuberance and occipital bunning were also different in different ages. The degree of the occipital protuberance was more and more significant with the age, which changed greatly from Neolithic Age to Bronze and Iron Age. In the Holocene, most people did not appear occipital bunning on the skull, but the relatively significant occipital bunning appeared in the Bronze and Iron Age. Conclusion The variation of occipital protuberance may be related to the change of skull size and overuse of trapezius muscle in Holocene. The occipital bunning appearance may reflect the relative development speed of the brain and skull to some extent.