Mandibular fossa of <i>Homo erectus</i>: A response to Durband

Mowbray, Ken; Márquez, Samuel; Delson, Eric

doi:10.1002/ar.10053

Cited by 4 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 5 publications

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“…This structure prevents the location of the STF from coinciding with the highest portion of the mandibular fossa at its most lateral aspect, a condition seen in all the Ngandong fossils and Sambungmacan 3. In addition, the lateral side of the OH 9 mandibular fossa is open and does not curve inferiorly to any significant degree to form a basin, which is different from the morphology previously discussed for Ngandong 7 (contra Mowbray et al, 2002). At its lateralmost edge, the mandibular fossa of OH 9 is unlike that seen in any of the Ngandong fossils or in Sambungmacan 3.…”

Section: Ohcontrasting

confidence: 57%

“…As mentioned previously, both Delson et al (2001) and Mowbray et al (2002) claim that the juvenile KNM-WT 15000 exhibits characteristics in its mandibular fossa that are similar to those seen in the Ngandong specimens. Delson and colleagues (2001) are careful to note that this specimen does represent a subadult; thus, the morphologies displayed in this fossil are potentially unrepresentative of the adult condition.…”

Section: Knm-wt 15000mentioning

confidence: 59%

“…The characteristic combination of the lack of a true postglenoid process and the consistent location of the STF at the apex of the mandibular fossa along its entire length is currently limited to the Ngandong and Sambungmacan hominids. By contrast, each of the fossil hominids from Sangiran and Africa that were examined in this study possess large postglenoid processes that form at least a portion of the posterior mandibular fossa, and in none of these fossils does the STF course in the apex of the mandibular fossa along its entire length (contra Mowbray et al, 2002).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 86%

“…' Mowbray et al (2002) elaborate on this point. ''Of perhaps greater importance,'' they note, ''is our observation that several African members of the H. erectus (s.l.)…”

Section: Ohmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The course of the STF may be a trait unique to Ngandong and Sambungmacan, and, therefore, indicative of a discontinuity between these specimens and the Sangiran hominids (e.g., Larnach and Macintosh, 1974;Durband, 2002aDurband, ,b, 2004aBaba et al, 2003Baba et al, , 2004 or this trait may simply be a phylogenetically insignificant polymorphism of Homo erectus (e.g., Delson et al, 2001;Antón, 2002Antón, , 2003. In this study, the mandibular fossae from several fossils will be analyzed in an effort to determine the specific manifestation of this feature in each of the hominids mentioned in the papers by Delson and colleagues (2001), Durband (2002a), and Mowbray et al (2002).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Mandibular Fossa Morphology in the Ngandong and Sambungmacan Fossil Hominids

Durband

2008

The Anatomical Record

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There has been debate in recent years concerning the significance of the mandibular fossa morphology in the Ngandong and Sambungmacan hominids. These fossils lack a postglenoid process and their squamotympanic fissure runs along the apex of the fossa for its entire length. This configuration differs from that seen in other fossil and modern humans, which have a prominent postglenoid process and a squamotympanic fissure that takes a more posterior course that does not lie in the apex of the fossa. Some recent studies have suggested that the Ngandong and Sambungmacan hominids are not unique in their expression of these characteristics, and that they can also be found in other fossil crania from Africa and Indonesia. The present study reexamines these morphologies in an effort to better understand their distribution in the hominid fossil record. The results confirm that the lack of a prominent postglenoid process in combination with a squamotympanic fissure that lies wholly in the apex of the mandibular fossa along its entire length is indeed autapomorphic for the Ngandong and Sambungmacan fossils. This finding, in conjunction with work on other nonmetric features in these hominids, suggests that at least two hominid morphs, possibly representing separate species, were present on Java during the Pleistocene. In addition, if this apparent autapomorphy is confirmed, then it is also unlikely that the Ngandong hominids contributed to the gene pool of modern humans. Anat Rec, 291:1212Rec, 291: -1220Rec, 291: , 2008 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc.Key words: Homo erectus; Java; Sangiran; Sambungmacan; temporomandibular jointIn hominids, the mandibular fossa is located on the temporal bone on the lateralmost edge of the skull base. It forms the cranial portion of the temporomandibular joint, and is formed largely by the squamous portion of the temporal bone. The posterior wall of the mandibular fossa is made up of a combination of the anterior surface of the tympanic plate and an inferior projection of the squamous temporal, the postglenoid process or tubercle. The squamous temporal component of the posterior wall of the mandibular fossa, including the postglenoid process, is separated from the tympanic plate by the squamotympanic fissure (STF), also sometimes known as the Glaserian fissure.The potentially unique nature of the Ngandong mandibular fossa was first noted by Weidenreich (1951). His description is as follows (note that he is writing from the point of view of looking down upon the base of the calotte):''The deepest point of the [mandibular] fossa in modern man and in Sinanthropus is situated farther forward than in Solo man, and the floor of the fossa

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Section: Ohcontrasting

confidence: 57%

Section: Knm-wt 15000mentioning

confidence: 59%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 86%

“…' Mowbray et al (2002) elaborate on this point. ''Of perhaps greater importance,'' they note, ''is our observation that several African members of the H. erectus (s.l.)…”

Section: Ohmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Mandibular Fossa Morphology in the Ngandong and Sambungmacan Fossil Hominids

Durband

2008

The Anatomical Record

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Accumulating fragments from our past to reveal the evolution of human form and function

Laitman¹

2002

Anat. Rec.

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<i>Homo erectus</i> calvaria from Ngawi (Java) and its evolutionary implications

Kaifu

Kurniawan

Kubo

et al. 2015

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Ngawi 1 is an undated but well-preserved Homo erectus calvaria from Java. Previous craniometric and morphological studies have shown its similarities to late Javanese H. erectus from Ngandong as well as Sambungmacan (Sm 1 [and Sm 3]). Some researchers emphasize their morphological homogeneity, and suggest that this 'Ngandong/Sambungmacan/Ngawi group' is morphologically distinct from H. erectus from the Early Pleistocene of Sangiran and Trinil, possibly at a species-level. In this study, we reinvestigated Ngawi 1 based on the newly cleaned original specimen and using microcomputed tomography with the aim of testing if such morphological discontinuity really exists within the Javanese fossil record. We metrically and non-metrically examined 33 cranial characters that are useful to distinguish earlier and later Javanese H. erectus. We also evaluated the morphology of the three Sambungmacan crania (Sm 1, 3, and 4) in the same way. The results of these and multivariate analyses support previous studies that Ngawi 1 exhibits many characteristic features of Ngandong H. erectus. However, Ngawi 1 is more or less similar to earlier Javanese H. erectus in smaller cranial size, a weak but distinct supraglabellar depression, a relatively short temporal bone, limited posterior projection of the middle part of the occipital torus, a shallower and 'roofed' mandibular fossa, and a smaller mastoid process. The three Sambungmacan crania also show general affinities to Ngandong, but are similar to earlier Javanese H. erectus in a few or more characters. Such slightly shifted character distribution is at least consistent with the hypothesis of continuous evolution of H. erectus through the Pleistocene of Java. This minor but potentially meaningful pattern of morphological variation should not be overlooked when a morphological group is defined for the specimens from Ngandong, Sambungmacan, and Ngawi. We also determined the endocranial volume of Ngawi 1 to be 959 cm 3 .

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Mandibular fossa of Homo erectus: A response to Durband

Cited by 4 publications

References 5 publications

Mandibular Fossa Morphology in the Ngandong and Sambungmacan Fossil Hominids

Mandibular Fossa Morphology in the Ngandong and Sambungmacan Fossil Hominids

Accumulating fragments from our past to reveal the evolution of human form and function

<i>Homo erectus</i> calvaria from Ngawi (Java) and its evolutionary implications

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