Chapter LXXXII: Os Calcis in the Munsee and in United States Whites

ARTICULAR FACETS FOR ASTRAGALUS

---------------+------+--------+----------+------------+-------------
| | | Three | Three | Three
| | | facets, | facets | facets,
| | | but the | completely |disconnected,
|Speci-| Two | two |disconnected| with a wide
| mens | facets |anterior | |notch between
| | |separated | | the anterior
| | |only by a | | two
| | | ridge | |
---------------+------+--------+----------+------------+-------------
Males: | | % | % | % | %
Munsee | (31) | 25.8 | 19.4 | 35.5 | 19.4
United States| | | | |
whites | (55) | 25.5 | 7.3 | 29.1 | 38.2
Females: | | | | |
Munsee | (29) | 48.3 | 10.3 | 41.4 | —
United States| | | | |
whites | (30) | 40 | 16.7 | 20 | 23.3
+------+--------+----------+------------+-------------
Right: | | | | |
Munsee | (31) | 42 | 6.5 | 42 | 9.7
United States| | | | |
whites | (51) | 29.4 | 15.7 | 21.6 | 33.3
Left: | | | | |
Munsee | (29) | 31 | 24 | 34.5 | 10.3
United States| | | | |
whites | (34) | 32.4 | 2.9 | 32.4 | 32.4
---------------+------+--------+----------+------------+-------------

An additional point of some interest in connection with the calcaneus is the development of the peroneal spine. Among the Munsee this was found frequently to be very moderate and never pronounced; among the whites, cases with a much more marked development of the spine are met with occasionally, especially among the males.

_Astragalus_

Next to the calcaneus, the most interesting bone of the tarsus is the astragalus. The bone exhibits wide and characteristic variations among the higher mammals and may well be expected to show some groupal differences in man. It yields itself to three measurements, the maximum length, breadth, and height, from which in turn we obtain the module or mean diameter, useful in comparing the size of the bone, and the breadth-length and breadth-height indexes, which show its shape.

_a_ THE RIGHT AND LEFT FIRST METATARSAL OF MUNSEE SKELETON NO. 285,326, U.S.N.M., SHOWING DISPROPORTION IN SIZE; ALSO A CANAL IN THE SMALLER BONE, POSSIBLY THE VESTIGE OF AN EARLY FRACTURE]

_b_ THE CALCANEI OF MALE MUNSEE SKELETON NO. 285,313, U.S.N.M., SHOWING WIDE SEPARATION OF THE TWO FACETS FOR THE ASTRAGALUS]

There are 60 astragali in the Munsee material, and the measurements of 52 paired bones are given below. They show the bone in the male to be absolutely larger in every dimension than in the female. As to the side, there is practically no difference among the males, but among the females the average measurements of the left astragalus are all slightly higher than those of the right bone. The module is practically identical on the two sides in the males, and slightly higher on the left in the females. As to the relative proportions, there is great similarity between the two sexes, as well as on the two sides of the body.