3B Scientific Anthropological Skull Model - Broken Hill or Kabwe - Manual (Page 2)

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Broken Hill or Kabwe
• Homo erectus rhodesiensis
• Homo sapiens rhodesiensis (early- archaic Homo sapiens)
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• Skull without lower jaw
• Homo Heidelbergensis
The model was developed from a cast of the replica from the collection of the Johann Wolfgang Goethe
University of Frankfurt am Main, Institute of Anthropology and Human Genetics for Biologists.
The skull of Broken Hill (today called Kabwe, Zambia) was discovered in north western Rhodesia in 1921.
It lay on the floor of a cave which extended into the mound of an ore mine, at first over some 30 m with
a slight incline, and then sloped down abruptly. The end of the cave was about 27 m below the entrance
level. Besides the skull, other human and animal bones and primitive implements were found. These finds
were largely covered with lead, zinc and vanadium ores and, thus, preserved in a natural way.
The generally well preserved skull shows an almost intact face. The teeth are also well preserved and dis-
play major pathological processes in the entire parodontium, such as tooth decay and abscesses.
The neurocranium lacks the right temporal bone and portions of the occipital bone. The left-hand side of
the skull shows minor defects which are believed either to be dental impressions of a carnivore or injuries
caused by stone tools. Inflammatory processes are another possible explanation.
The comparatively large and heavy-weight skull features a remarkable length of 206 mm. The width and
height are only 145 mm and 130 mm respectively. The neurocranial volume of approximately 1,300 cm
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lies only a little bit below the average value of recent man.
The extremely pronounced toruses over the eye sockets were initially responsible for assigning the find to
the Neanderthal form group where however, the lateral thickening of the torus is not so developed. But
similar extreme developments can be found in the find of Saldanha, in the Indonesian Ngangdong group
and much stronger in Oldoway Bed II.
It is also the sagittal curve of the forehead section that varies from that of the Pre-Neanderthals and
Neanderthals. Yet the affinity to the Ngangdong finds is obvious. Still greater deviations from the
Neanderthal skulls are evident when the skull outlines are compared in the rear view.
The pentagonal shape typical of many Homo erectus finds differentiates Broken Hill clearly from the so
called ”pancake“ shape with the flowing and broadly rounded curve of the Neanderthals. However, the
rear of the head shows strong similarities to the Homo sapiens as the pronounced break of the Homo erec-
tus is lacking.
The visceral cranium exhibits a minor prognatism only. The very strong semi arches of the torus extend
right down in the glabellar region and far to the outside in the temporal region, making the skull even
broader than in the cheek bone region.
The sockets of the eyes are extremely large in size and the upper face with a total of 93 mm is very high.
This is especially due to the high upper jaw bone that also points to a high mandibular body.
In summing up it can be said that the salient features of the skull of Broken Hill (Kabwe) reveal hardly any
affinity to the group of Neanderthals but are more similar to the fossil Recent Man of which the cranial
capacity is particularly worthy of mention.
Parts of the extremities were found together with the skull which do not show any of the characteristics
known from European Neanderthals.