Crania americana or, A comparative view of the skulls of various aboriginal nations of North and South America : to which is prefixed an essay on the varities of the human species / by Samuel George Morton.

  • Morton, Samuel George, 1799-1851.
Date:
1839
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Crania americana or, A comparative view of the skulls of various aboriginal nations of North and South America : to which is prefixed an essay on the varities of the human species / by Samuel George Morton. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by The University of Glasgow Library. The original may be consulted at The University of Glasgow Library.

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    7. THE INDOSTANIC FAMILY. THE HINDOOS. There are perhaps no people on the globe who present more varied physical traits than the Hindoos. In general, however, the face is oval, the nose straight or slightly aquiline, the mouth small, the teeth vertical and well formed, and the chin rounded and generally dimpled. The eyes are black, bright and expressive, the eye lashes long, and the brow thin and arched. The hair is long, black and glossy, and the beard very thin. The head of the Hindoo is small in proportion to the body, elongated, and narrow especially across the forehead, which is only moderately elevated. India presents, every tint of complexion from an absolute black to a clear and beautiful brunette; but the different shades of olive are predominant, especially among the higher castes, while the Pariahs, and others of the lowest class, are as uniformly dark. “ The great difference in color between the different natives,” says Bishop Heber, “ struck me much: of the crowd by whom we were surrounded, some were black as Negroes, others merely copper-colored, and others little darker than Tunisians. It is not merely the difference of exposure, since this variety is visible in the fishermen, who are naked all alike. Nor does it depend on caste, since very high-caste Brahmins are sometimes black, while Pariahs are comparatively fair.”* The people of Cambaia are said to be nearly of an ash color; those of Guzerat and Mahratta are yellow, while olive is the prevalent tint in Goa. The women of the Brahminical caste are celebrated for their beauty, especially those of Canara and Malabar, who are said to bear a comparison with those of Georgia and Circassia. They are often mothers at ten years of age. The stature of the Hindoos is low, in general not exceeding five feet three or four inches; their persons are slender, their limbs long and delicate, but well moulded, and their hands and feet small and beautifully formed. The moral character of the Hindoos varies much in the different sections of India, whence the discrepant statements of modern travellers. They appear by nature to be a mild, sober and industrious race, warm in their attachments and Narr. I, p. 45. Am. ed.