A multivariate analysis of artificially deformed patagonian skulls

Abstract

The quantitative variables related to aspects of prehistoric populations of Patagonia and Fueguía were analyzed. Skulls from adult individuals of both sexes, 100 deformed and 100 undeformed ones, were studied. Thirty-four linear and angular variables described by Herrera Fritot (1964) based on the sagittal profile were recorded. Data matrices, one for each sample (deformed and undeformed), were computed. Both samples were analyzed by principal components analysis and cluster techniques. Variables with major discriminatory power for each sample were obtained. Results were compared and four sets of variables were delimited. The first one consisted of variables which shared discriminatory power between both the deformed and undeformed skulls; the second set includes those which deal with the variation for undeformed skulls; the third set with the variation for deformed skulls, and the fourth set did not provide any important contributions dealing with the intrasample variation. Differences among variables by region were also analyzed.