I am unable to subscribe to the prognathism of the Dravidian tribes of Southern India, or of the jungle people, though aberrant examples thereof are contained in the collection of skulls at the Madras Museum, e.g., the skull of a Tamil man (caste unknown) who died a few years ago in Madras (Pl. 1-a). The average facial angle of various castes and tribes which I have examined ranged between 67° and 70°, and the inhabitants of Southern India may be classified as orthognathous. Some of the large earthenware urns excavated by Mr. A. Rea, of the Archæological Department, at the "prehistoric" burial site at Aditanallūr in the Tinnevelly district,[1] contained human bones, and skulls in a more or less perfect condition. Two of these skulls, preserved at the Madras Museum, are conspicuously prognathous (Pl. 1-b). Concerning this burial site M. L. Lapicque writes as follows.[2] "J'ai rapporté un specimen des urnes funéraires, avec une collection assez complète du mobilier funéraire. J'ai rapporté aussi un crâne en assez bon état, et parfaitement déterminable. Il est hyperdolichocéphale, et's'accorde avec la série que le service d'archéologie de Madras a déja réunie. Je pense que la race d'Adichanallour appartient aux Proto-Dravidiens." The measurements of six of the most perfect skulls from Aditanallūr in the Madras Museum collection give the following results:—
| Cephalic length, cm. |
Cephalic breadth, cm. |
Cephalic index. |
| 18·8 | 12·4 | 66· |
| 19·1 | 12·7 | 66·5 |
| 18·3 | 12·4 | 67·8 |
| 18· | 12·2 | 67·8 |
| 18· | 12·8 | 77·1 |
| 16·8 | 13·1 | 78· |
