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Explorations in Turkestan : Expedition of 1904 : vol.2 |
THE SKULL OF THE PREHISTORIC HORSES. 415
and yet this little animal seems fully adult; in this we may see an explanation of the errors of Sanson and Rütimeyer.
The next question relating to the skull of a horse must concern the indices of ear-load (Ohrbelastung) and of parietal curvature (Scheitelkruemmung) . Unfortunately I am not able to produce here a very comprehensive tabulation of these indices on prehistoric horses, since I am able to verify them only on the skulls actually before me in natura.
Table of indices.
Still more important in discriminating between different races of horses is the relation of breadth of forehead to length of skull. We know that, as Sanson has shown, the ass and the Oriental horse as well as the ponies are broad-fronted, while the heavy Occidental horses are usually narrow-fronted, as are also the quaggas and zebras. The following table, based on Nehring's method of determining this relation, exhibits the order of the skulls of the different races, when arranged according to size. I must remark that, in inserting the frontal width of the Anau horse I have calculated this approximately from the palatal width, which is determinable. The palatal width is to the frontal width as Io : 2I, which I obtained from a series of 20 Oriental and io Occidental skulls ; at the same time I ascertained that this ratio is always greater in the Oriental race than in the Occidental.
Ratio of basal length to width of frontal bone.
P. cl.
Ass from Abadieh (Egypt) mummified skull, 5 years, male 210
Ass from Aden (Arabia), 5 years, female 222
Horse from Iceland, after Nehring, old, male 221.7
Horse from a turbary of Tribsee, after Nehring 223
Horse from a turbary of the Somme (France) 230
Horse from Iceland, after Nehring, 9 years, male 230
Horse from Arabia, after Nehring, 5 years, male 230.7
Horse from Anau, 5 years 232
Horse from Gulbrandsdal (Skania), after Nehring 232.7
Equus przewalskii, after Salenski 232-244
Horse from Kalmukia, after Nehring, 4 to 5 years, male 239
Horse from Auvernier, Switzerland, bronze time, 6 years, female.... 240
Horse from Grisons (Switzerland), after Nehring, 8 years, male 241 4
Horse from Schuettarschen (Bohemia), Hallstatt iron time, old 241
Horse from Kutterschitz (Bohemia), 12 m. deep in earth, neolithic 243
Horse from Pinzgau (Tyrol), after Nehring, Io years, male 242
Horse from diluvium of Remagen (Rhenania), after Nehring 249
Horse from Hostomitz (Bohemia), La Tène, 4 years • • 253
Horse from Pinzgau (Tyrol), after Frank, 9 years, male 254.6
Horse from Grisons (Switzerland), after Nehring, old, female 255
AI.
A 2.
B I.
C I.
B 2.
C 2.
Ear-load index.
Facies tangent.
Parietal crest
curvature index.
Lesbre.
Equus przewalskii, male, 3 years
Kutterschitz
Sobrusan, juv
Schuettarschen
Auvernier
Moosseedorf, Mus. Bern
La Tène, Mus. Bern
Luescherz
Ziel Canal
15
17
17
15
15
4
10
25
22
22
28
24
25
22
25
23
19
18
20
19 II
14
27 30 23 25 22 22 22
8
18
20
20
23
20 2I
14
21
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—7
7
7
7
6 —5
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