able, and afford some probability to Blumenbach’s conjecture,
that this peculiarity depended upon some natural variety
in the teeth of the Egyptian race. A constant uniformity in
the structure and arrangement of the teeth, is an important
particular in the identification of species, and if any human
race were found to deviate materially, in its dentition from
the rest of mankind, the fact would give rise to a strong
suspicion of a real specific diversity. On this ground it is a
matter of some interest to determine the question above adverted
to, respecting the teeth of the Egyptians. The most'
satisfactory method of obtaining information on this point, is
by inspecting the mummies of children. This appears scarcely
to have been done until an opportunity occurred some years
since at the Bristol Institution, when two young mummies*
were examined, containing^ the remains of children whose
death had occurred between the third and fourth year, between
the completion and loosening ofLthe first, set of teeth.
Jn an account of this examination by Mr. Estlin, it is .stated
that “ in one of the mummies all the first set, consisting of
twenty teeth were cut, and the rudiments of the second may
be seen under the gums. AH the teeth prove to be precisely
similar to those of other children under five years of age.
Each jaw contained, with the exception of one tooth which
had dropped out, the usual number of incisores, cuspidati
and molares, and all of these had precisely the form of the
teeth of European children of the same age. This examination
leaves no room for doubt that the particular abearance -
of the teeth so often noticed in the mummies of adult Egyptians,
must have depended on the nature of their food, unless,
which seems not very probable, it was produced by
filing, or some analogous practice.”
IT 2. Position of the Ears.
It was long ago observed by Winkelmann, that the ears
are mvanably placed mnch higher in Egyptian statnes, than
* These mummies were carefully examined by Mr. Richard Smith, Mr. Estlin
and myself, and an account of the inspection was drawn up by Mr. Estlin for
the Philosophical Society annexed to the Bristol Institution.
in those of the Greek#,«/ but the •* circumstance was attributed
to ‘à capricious custom in the artists of Egypt. The
fact has lately attracted greater notice. M. DureHU de la
Malle,' in examining^ the Egyptian remains collected in the
Museum of Turin, was particularly struck by this peculiarity
in the statuesiqf Egyptian, kings and gods., It happened, that
six mummies recently imported from Upper; Egypt, came
under examination at the period of M. de*la'MâMéf& yisitf and
afforded him an Opportunity, of ascertaining whether the ear
and the meatus auditorius are; rëally placHi ^Higher in the
heads of Egyptians than in those belonging^' other races
of men. In the skulls, of these mummies, às well as" in-many
others brought from the same; country, although the? facial
angle , was not different from that of-European heads, the
meatus auditorius, instead of feeing, situated in the sajpe plane
with the basis' of the .nose, was found fey M. de la ^Lall|V^
be exactly on a level with the centre Of the'eye l- The head was
also much depressed in the region of the temples, and the
vertex elevated ; the difference in this particular between
European and Egyptian sknlls being not less than from on^
inch and a half to two inches. According to M. de la Malle
this peculiarity is still to be found in the, and hèfcitéS
as a specimen, Elias Bootor, a Copt from Upper Egypt, who
has residecLtwenty years in Paris, as a teacher of Arabic. In
this person, the high position of the ears is, remarkable, and
gives them the appearance of two little horns. The Jews, are
said by this writer to partake in some degree of the same character.*
The osteological characteristic ascribed ,to Egyptian skulls
by M. Dureau de la Malle, has been recently considered by
M. Dubreuil, who has described the heads of two mummies
in a memoir presented to the Academy of sciences. In these
skulls the peculiarity in question was wanting, and M. Fleuren
s, who read a report on the same memoir, makes a similar
observation respecting the Egyptian heads in the Museum of
Paris. It must be concluded that this is by no means a constant
character.
Révue Encyclopédique. Medical and Surgical Journal, July 14,1832.