The aborigines of Tasmania. Pt. II. The skeleton / by Sir William Turner.

  • Turner, Wm. (William), Sir, 1832-1916.
Date:
1910
Catalogue details

Licence: In copyright

Credit: The aborigines of Tasmania. Pt. II. The skeleton / by Sir William Turner. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by The Royal College of Surgeons of England. The original may be consulted at The Royal College of Surgeons of England.

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    The transverse processes had costal facets for the corresponding rib tubercles as far as the 9th vertebrae ; in the lowest three the processes were non-articular and diminished in projection from the 10th to the 12th. Mammillary processes were present in the 11th and 12th. The dorsal spinous processes had no special variations in appearance. Lumbar Vertebrae.—Both mammillary and accessory processes were present. The 1st lumbar transverse process was 10 mm. long, as compared with 19 mm., the length in the 3rd lumbar. The spines were normal. The 5th lumbar had no unusual modification. In my Challenger Report, in addition to a description of the peculiarities observed in the spinal column, I dwelt at some length on the form and dimensions of the bodies of the lumbar vertebrae, and the part which they took in the production of the lumbar curve in the human spine. From the examination of a series of spines in Europeans, and in the aborigines who formed the special subject of that report, it was evident that the upper and lower surfaces of the lumbar bodies were not parallel to each other, but inclined obliquely, so that the body was wedge-shaped; in the upper lumbar vertebrae the vertical diameter of each body was longer behind than in front ; in the lower it was longer in front than behind. These differences, and the part which they took in the production of the lumbar curve, were also investigated at the same time and independently on another series of racial skeletons by Professor D. J. Cunningham, and a numerical index was computed by each of us from the measure- ments of the vertical diameter in front and behind. If the upper and lower surfaces of the body were parallel and equal, the index would be 100, but if not parallel a special posterior vert. di. x 100 anterior vert. di. a general lumbar index by dividing the collective posterior vert. di. x 100 by the collective anterior vertical diameters. If the resulting index was below 100 the anterior vertical diameter exceeded the posterior; if above 100 the posterior vertical diameter was the longer. I have pursued this method in the Tasmanian skeleton now under consideration, and have computed the special and general indices in the four lower dorsals as well as in the lumbar vertebrae. index for each vertebra could be obtained by the formula