Abstract
The Katanga Skull THIS human skull belonging to a skeleton found in 1918 in some old native workings in the mine of Kambove (Katanga) in the Belgian Congo, has been made the subject of a study by Dr. Matthew Young of University College, London (Mem. Musee Roy. d'Hist. Nat. de Belgique, (2), 5). The skull is complete, with the lower jaw. It is undoubtedly of negro type, though showing signs which suggest admixture. Unfortunately, the remainder of the skeleton was not preserved. Although stained green with malachite, it shows no signs of mineralization to any appreciable degree. The specimen is of moderate length, very narrow, with a notable post-orbital constriction, and relatively high with a well-arched vault. The forehead is fairly rounded and shows the median eminence characteristic of the negroid type, though there are distinct indications of frontal eminences. The supracilliary ridges are fairly prominent. The temporal ridges are strongly developed, which is said to be a negroid feature. They appear to be more convergent than usual. The face is long, the nasal bridge excessively flat. The nasal aperture is relatively wide. Prognathism is moderate, and the lower jaw robust. The lower central incisors had been extracted at an early age. The skull is adult and probably male. It most closely resembles the Teita series from East Africa collected by Dr. Leakey, except in regard to the length of the face and especially of the alveolar portion. In this respect, it resembles two Nuba females from South Kordofan. A similar type of unusually long face and development of the alveolar region, accompanying an exceptionally high palate, is seen in Leakey's Nakuru and Elmenteita types, which have been compared with the Oldoway skull. These are usually considered to be Karaites, while Keith regards Oldoway as proto-Hamite. The Katanga skull then is a negro of recent date, probably not later than twelfth century, and is more nearly allied to the East than the West African type. It may be the remains of a slave captured at some distance from the Katanga.
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Research Items. Nature 139, 475–476 (1937). https://doi.org/10.1038/139475a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/139475a0