Morphological Consideration of the Human Coxal Bone from Akashi, Japan

Criticism on ENDO & BABA'S Article

Abstract

In 1948 HASEBE reported that the Akashi coxal bone belonged to Homo erectus. Recently, the present authors (YOSHIOKA 1978, YOSHIOKA & MUTO 1979) described that this bone belong probably either to neanderthalensis or to sapiens fossilis. However, ENDO & BABA (1982) have mentioned from morphological considerations: "He (Akashi man) is probably a Japanese of historic age and could possibly be a modern Japanese ".
The present author has some doubts on the restoration of the Akashi bone by ENDO & BABA. In comparison with several fossil coxal bones and recent Japanese ones, the anterior margin of the ilium of the Akashi bone was very pecuilar in form. From this finding and moire contourogram(ENDO & BABA'S Plate 6), it was thought that flatness of its iliac margin was probably based on a lack of part of the anterior iliac spines. Also, it is difficult to completely restore a lack of the posterior margin of its iliac wing based on the marked individual variation. Thus, the value of measurement depend on the way of restoration. Next, although they did not describe a comparison between the moire contourograms in their paper, its pattern of the Akashi bone seems to be much similar to that of Arago. Furthermore, their Fig. 9 shows that Akashi would not fall completely outside the range of the neanderthalensis and the sapiens fossilis, because the results of the recent Japanese distributed to such a large extent as some of them were closed to Minatogawa I and Di sseldorf.
Several investigators, a few paleontologists and some other investigators recognized that the Akashi bone had been sufficiently fossilized, although this bone was burned to ashes in consequence of the bombardment in the 2nd World War.