Gall's German enemies.

Franz Joseph Gall's (1758-1828) proposal for a new theory about how to represent the mental faculties is well known. He replaced the traditional perception-judgement-memory triad of abstract faculties with a set of 27 highly specific faculties, many of which humans share with animals. In addition, he argued that these faculties are dependent on specific cortical areas, these being his organs of mind. After several years of presenting his new views in Vienna, he was banned from lecturing for what he considered absurd reasons. The edict enticed him to make a scientific journey through the German states, both to present his ideas to targeted audiences and to collect more cases. This trip, started in 1805, was extended to include stops in Denmark, Holland, and Switzerland before finally ending in Paris in 1807. For the most part, Gall was received with great enthusiasm in what is now Germany, but there were some individuals who strongly opposed his anatomical discoveries and skull-based doctrine. In this article, we examine the concerns and arguments raised by Johann Gotlieb Walter in Berlin, Henrik Steffens in Halle, Jakob Fidelis Ackermann in Heidelberg, and Samuel Thomas Soemmerring in Munich, as well as how Gall responded to them.

Ludwig Heinrich Bojanus (1776-1827) on Gall's craniognomic system, zoology, and comparative anatomy.

Most of what was known about Franz Joseph Gall's (1758-1828) organology or Schädellehre prior to the 1820s came from secondary sources, including letters from correspondents, promotional materials, brief newspaper articles about his lecture-demonstrations, and editions and translations of some lengthier works of varying quality in German. Physician Ludwig Heinrich Bojanus (1776-1827) practiced in Vienna's General Hospital in 1797-1798; attended some of Gall's public lectures; and, in 1801-1802, became one of the first physicians to provide detailed reports on Gall's emerging organology in French and English, respectively. Although Bojanus considered the human mind to be indivisible and did not entirely agree with Gall's assumption that the brain consists of a number of independent organs responsible for various faculties, he provided valuable information and thoughtful commentary on Gall's views. Furthermore, he defended Gall against the charge that his sort of thinking would lead to materialism and cautiously predicted that the new system would be fruitful for developing and stimulating important new research about the brain and mind. Bojanus became a professor of zoology in 1806 and a professor of comparative anatomy in 1814 at Vilnius University, where, among other accomplishments, he established himself as a founder of modern veterinary medicine and a pioneer of pre-Darwinian and pre-Lamarckian evolutionism.

Blood, sweat and plaster casts: Reviewing the history, composition, and scientific value of the Raymond A. Dart Collection of African Life and Death Masks.

This paper addresses the history, composition and scientific value of one of the most comprehensive facemask collections in Africa, the Raymond A. Dart Collection of African Life and Death Masks. Housed within the School of Anatomical Sciences at the University of the Witwatersrand (South Africa), it comprises 1110 masks (397 life, 487 death, 226 unknown). Life masks represent populations throughout Africa; death masks predominately southern Africa. Males preponderate by 75%. Recorded ages are error prone, but suggest most life masks are those of <35 year-olds, death masks of 36+ year-olds. A total of 241 masks have associated skeletons, 209 presenting a complete skull. Life masks date between 1927 and c.1980s, death masks 1933 and 1963. This historical collection presents uncanny associations with outmoded typological and evolutionary theories. Once perceived an essential scientific resource, performed craniofacial superimpositions identify the nose as the only stable feature maintained, with the remaining face best preserved in young individuals with minimal body fat. The facemask collection is most viable for teaching and research within the history of science, specifically physical anthropology, and presents some value to craniofacial identification. Future research will have to be conducted with appropriate ethical considerations to science and medicine.

On the origins of organology: Franz Joseph Gall and a girl named Bianchi.

Franz Joseph Gall (1758-1828) introduced a new theory of mind and brain at the end of the eighteenth century, which he referred to as organology, dealing with mental functions and their cortical localizations. Gall wrote that observations regarding the verbal learning capacities of his schoolmates brought about his new way of thinking. This widely accepted view, however, requires qualification. Although Gall's experiences and observations as a schoolboy were relevant, especially for his craniology, these childhood memories might have been recalled and reinterpreted after he had started to think about the faculties of mind-specifically after he had met Bianchi, a 5-year-old girl with a special talent for music.

[Opinion by Professor J. Olbrycht and Dr Marian Kusiak after examination of the skull of St. Stanislaus --a criminalistic and forensic interpretation]. / Opinia--Profesora Jana Olbrychta i Dr Med. Mariana Kusiaka--po badaniach czaszki sw. Stanislawa w interpretacji kryminalistyka i medyków sadowych.

In June 1963 the Bishop of Cracow Karol Wojtyla approached Professor Jan Olbrycht (Chair of the Department of Forensic Medicine, Cracow Medical Academy) with the request to examine the reliquary and skull of St. Stanislaus. The examination was carried out by J. Olbrycht and M. Kusiak and the results published. Included in this article are the interpretations of these opinions by a criminologist and two forensic physicians. One of the forensic physicians (Z. Marek) acknowledged that there was a case of unauthorized misinterpretation of Professor Olbrycht's statement.

Nacurrie 1: Mark of ancient Java, or a caring mother's hands, in terminal Pleistocene Australia?

There has been a protracted debate over the evidence for intentional cranial modification in the terminal Pleistocene Australian crania from Kow Swamp and Coobool Creek. Resolution of this debate is crucial to interpretations of the significance of morphological variation within terminal Pleistocene-early Holocene Australian skeletal materials and claims of a regional evolutionary sequence linking Javan Homo erectus and Australian Homo sapiens. However, morphological comparisons of terminal Pleistocene and recent Australian crania are complicated by the significantly greater average body mass in the former. Raw and size-adjusted metric comparisons of the terminal Pleistocene skeleton from Nacurrie, south-eastern Australia, with modified and unmodified H. sapiens and H. erectus, identified a suite of traits in the frontal, parietal, and occipital bones associated with intentional modification of a neonate's skull. These traits are also present in some of the crania from Kow Swamp and Coobool Creek, which are in close geographic proximity to Nacurrie, but not in unmodified H. sapiens or Javan H. erectus. Frontal bone morphology in H. erectus was distinct from all of the Australian H. sapiens samples. During the first six months of life, Nacurrie's vault may have been shaped by his mother's hands, rather than though the application of fixed bandages. Whether this behaviour persisted only for several generations, or hundreds of years, remains unknown. The reasons behind the shaping of Nacurrie's head, aesthetics or otherwise, and why this cultural practice was adopted and subsequently discontinued, will always remain a matter of speculation.

Skulls, science, and the spoils of war: craniological studies at the United States Army Medical Museum, 1868-1900.

Beginning in 1868, the United States Army Medical Museum issued a request to Army medical personnel situated in 'Indian country' for specimens of skulls from Native Americans. The purpose of this collection was to promote the study of craniometry, a branch of racial science commonly used to delineate the different varieties of mankind and to rank them according to their perceived intellectual attributes. Yet, as this paper argues, the efforts of Army surgeons in amassing hundreds of crania for the Army Medical Museum were not matched by a similar level of commitment on the part of racial researchers. In examining why this seemingly impressive collection fell rapidly into disuse, this paper explores the creation and abandonment of one of the largest craniological collections formed in the United States in relation to the trajectory of craniometrical studies during this period. It also questions the link between the interests of racial researchers in the late nineteenth century and those of government policy makers, arguing that the two might not have been particularly closely aligned in the case of craniological research in Washington.

[The beginnings of anthropology in Hungary]. / Az antropológia kezdetei Hazánkban.

In the second half of the 19th century anthropological research started everywhere in the world. Cranioscopy formed an important part of physical anthropology. József Lenhossék (1818-1888) worked also on this subject and on the basis of one of his investigations in 1875 he became the founder of physical anthropology in Hungary. On 76 skulls of several collections and on 265 heads together with his coworkers he performed 50 measurements on each skulls and heads and calculated the important ratios (skull-indexes). He determined the skull-indexes of the Hungarian people. These indexes are valid also today.

[Radiological and anthropometric analysis of the symmetry and direction of evolution of skulls from some historic populations]. / Analiza symetrii i kierunku zmian w budowie czaszek wybranych populacji dziejowych na podstawie badan radiologicznych i antropometrycznych.

INTRODUCTION: Asymmetry is a common phenomenon in nature. It is typical for the human body and for the skull as its part. Knowledge of asymmetry and normal anatomy, especially of variability which does not represent pathology but distinguishes individuals is the basis for correct interpretation of radiological findings concerning the skull both in research and diagnostic examinations widely performed in surgery, neurology, neurosurgery, internal medicine, or pediatrics. Analysis of fluctuating asymmetry reveals the influence of stress factors on human development and the ability of the organism to defend itself against stress. The aim of this work was to analyse the asymmetry of skulls from some historic populations and to describe changes in their anatomy over the ages. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The material consisted of three skull groups: one contemporary with 82 skulls and two mediaeval (52 skulls from Cedynia and 77 skulls from Gródek on Bug). Direct measurements were done and the skull was X-rayed in the Posterior-Anterior and skull-base projections. Images were scanned and calibrated with MicroStation 95 Academic Edition software. Helmert's transformation with first-order polynomial was done to attain a suitable geometry. Vectorisation of axes and areas was performed on reference material. Using tools for measurement of vector elements, the distance between bilateral points of both sides of the skull were obtained. Data were analysed statistically. RESULTS: The results of measurements were used to study the directional and fluctuating asymmetry. It was found that asymmetry of the skull was present in both historic populations. The following conclusions were drawn: changes in the distribution of directional and fluctuating asymmetry for individual dimensions have taken place over the ages. A high level of directional asymmetry in the facial part and fluctuating asymmetry in the calvaria is typical for contemporary skulls. The reverse is true for relations in the case of mediaeval skulls. A greater level of fluctuating asymmetry in contemporary skulls reveals greater influence of the developmental stress on the contemporary population and its weaker ability for compensation.

How "Caucasoids" got such big crania and why they shrank. From Morton to Rushton.

In the 19th century measurements of cranial capacity by Morton and others supported a "Caucasoid>Mongoloid>Negroid" hierarchy of intelligence. This continued through most of the 20th century but was challenged by a nonhierarchical view originating with Boas. Beginning in the 1980s Rushton correlated cranial and IQ measurements and presented a hierarchy with "Mongoloids" at the top. Each of these periods relates to its social context: the 19th-century hierarchy paralleled the height of European world domination; the nonhierarchy of the 20th century reflected world wars, worldwide depression, and the breakup of empires; the "Mongoloid>Caucasoid>Negroid" hierarchy followed the economic success of several Asian nations. Morton's cranial ranking was the result of his sampling error and his acceptance of the hierarchical thinking of his time. But how is it possible for Rushton to support the M>C>N ordering while using the data of several anthropologists who have rejected racial hierarchies on empirical grounds? The answer to this question involves a critique of Rushton's use of the race concept, his aggregation of diverse populations into three traditional races, his claim to explain differences in "cultural achievements" on the basis of variation in brain size, and a number of other problems. The study concludes by noting that the major consequence of these hierarchies is the apparent justification for the exploitation of those at the bottom.

[Pneumatization of the mastoid process in medieval and contemporary skulls in light of radiologic and anthropometric measurements]. / Pneumatyzacja wyrostka sutkowatego kosci skroniowej czaszek sredniowiecznych i wspólczesych w swietle badan radiologicznych i antropometrycznych.

Pneumatization and morphogenesis of the temporal mastoid process take place concurrently and exhibit noticeable variability. The mastoid process is phylogenetically the youngest part of the skull. The aim of this work was to examine the pneumatization of the mastoid process in mediaeval and contemporary skulls using radiological and anthropometric methods. 85 male skulls from the second half of the 20th century were compared with 102 male and 50 female skulls from the Middle Ages. Bilateral X-ray images of mastoid processes according to Schuller were obtained and anthropometric measurements were done. Planimetry was used to obtain the air cell area of the mastoid processes. Correlations between several parameters of the temporal bone, facial bones, cranial bones and pneumatization of the mastoid process were studied. X-ray images revealed four types of the mastoid process: pneumatic, mixed, sclerotic, and apneumatic. The pneumatic mastoid process prevailed in every group of skulls. The mixed type was the least frequent in mediaeval female skulls and most frequent in contemporary male skulls. The apneumatic type was the rarest one in all groups of skulls. The largest surface area of mastoid air cell system was found in contemporary male and the smallest in mediaeval female skulls (Fig. 5). An asymmetry between left and right processes was observed in mediaeval and contemporary skulls, being more evident in the latter. No correlation was found between anthropometric parameters of the skull and the extent of pneumatization of the mastoid process.

Vesalius on the variability of the human skull: book I chapter V of De humani corporis fabrica.

Vesalius' short chapter on craniology and the "unnatural" shapes that skulls could take is a uniquely interesting illustration of the young anatomist's position halfway between a traditional belief in a standard or canonical "natural" human anatomy and the host of variations confronted in his day-to-day observation of actual cadavers. His interest in variability is marked in both editions of De humani corporis fabrica (1543, 1555), and it is no coincidence that two of the anatomical features that today bear the great anatomist's name are atypical. In their shape, all of the five skulls that illustrate Chapter 5 of Book I of the Fabrica fall within margins of variability recognized as standard today, but even in Vesalius' own century it was noticed that the sutures in the four "unnatural" skulls do not occur in real life. The article considers the meaning of this unusual departure from his reliance upon observation and includes a translation of Vesalius' craniology chapter from the original Latin, with annotations and two appendices containing his 1555 revisions and clinical addenda.

[An anatomical curiosity: a miniature cranium in marble, pathological evidence?]. / Une curiosité anatomique: un crâne miniature en marbre, témoin pathologique?

After a detailed historical review of the representation of the human skull in art, the authors present a rare example of a reduced marble skull representing as they suggest it, cranio-facial lesions of which they try to explain the etiopathology.