Non-metric cranial traits: Sex difference and age dependence

Abstract

Absence of association with age and/or sex in the case of discrete traits was hypothesized by Berry & Berry (1967). The important implication that skeletal material too fragmentary for sex and age determination may also be used in discrete-trait-studies stimulated us to test this hypothesis for 49 discrete traits in 254 Amsterdam crania of known age and sex. The results were compared with those of other such studies of European skulls. No significant deviation from the hypothesis was found as far as age dependence is concerned while sex difference did occur for some traits. At the same time Corruccini's (1974) conclusion that the hypothesis fails when tested in the Terry collection was found to result largely from the fact that right and left manifestations of lateral traits were treated as being independent. The possibility of including skeletal material too fragmentary for sex and age determination in future discrete-trait-studies is still open for discussion