Petrie, William M. Flinders: Deshasheh: 1897 (London, 1898)

30

DESHASHEPI.

differences of the Roman from the early

skulls are mostly less than the insignificant

differences between the two classes of early
skulls.

Next we may take the ratios of these
measurements, or the indices, reckoned as
usual: breadth and height -f- length, nasal
width -r- height, basi-alveolar -4- basi-nasal.

Indices. Males.

Breadth

Biauricular

Height

Nasal

Alveolar

Deshasheh.

7G-2

67-0

74-3

47

93-5

Bahsamun.

76-1
65-1
74-4
45-4
93-5

Behnesa.

77-5
66-6
72-1
46-3
94-5

Perfect.

76-2
65 -7
74-8
49
94

Cut up.

77-5
64-5
76-5

43
92

Medum.

76-0

64-8
73-8
48-1
95-9

Egyptian.
7G-9

72-4
49-5
93

Here again the Roman skulls are very nearly
of the same proportions as the early ones; in
four dimensions the variations of cither class
intersect the other class, the height of the
Roman is slightly less, and the only real
difference is in the nose, which is on the
average a little narrower in the later skulls.
On drawing curves of the varieties their range
and character is seen to be really identical.
And we thus reach the very important con-
clusion that there has been no distinct change
in the main elements of the skull between the
Vth Dynasty and Roman times in this district.
To obtain such a proof of the continuity and
general uniformity of the race in Middle Egypt
is a matter of great weight. It implies that
the disturbances of invasions have not seriously
altered the balance of physical characteristics.

Now another question becomes of crucial
importance when we have thus settled the
fixity of the Egyptian type here. This type
is practically identical with the average of all
the skulls of all dates and places from Egypt,
as we see in the last column. It is therefore
the average Egyptian type whose fixity we
have proved in one locality. And hence we
have a strong fixed point Avith which to com-
pare the New Race skulls. Some of the dimen-
sions and indices are of no value as distinctions,
since they are much the same in all four classes,
the New Race, the IVth Dynasty, the Vth
Dynasty, and the Roman. But some indices
are of distinctive importance, as for instance—■

Indices.
Breadth
Alveolar
Nasal

New Bace. IVthDyn. Vth Dyn. Roman.

71-8 76-0 7G-3 76*6

96 95-9 94 94

53 48-1 48 4G-2

In these cases the mean breadth and nasal
indices are in the New Race almost beyond the
limits of the Egyptian varieties; and in the
alveolar index there is a distinct difference
between the New Race and the Egyptian of
the Vth Dynasty and Roman time.

The force of this result bears strongly on the
question of whether the New Race people were
the prehistoric ancestors of the Egyptians, or
whether they were intrusive invaders of a
different type. If they were the immediate
ancestors of the Old Kingdom Egyptians, Ave
should be required to believe that within a
thousand years large and distinctive changes
occurred in the type of Egyptian skull, while
in four thousand years later no such difference
took place. This would be a very improbable
state of things. The permanence of the type
in historic times is a strong evidence that a
different type must belong to a different body
of people. This, however, would not be incon-
sistent with the two classes being allied, and
the difference being due to an admixture Avith
another race. In this case, if the NeAV Race
Libyan Avas the cousin of the Egyptian, it
would seem that a race Avith more slender nose
—perhaps Arab or other Semite—had mingled
Avith them to form the normal Egyptian.

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