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A sketch of a skull resting on a machine with different attachments to measure height, width, and facial angles.
A facial goniometer in Crania Americana.

Samuel G. Morton begins studying skulls to compare brain sizes across "racial" groups.

1830s

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A facial goniometer in Crania Americana.

Morton, often considered the first physical anthropologist and one of the key contributors to scientific racism, amasses 900 skulls to compare the brain size of five human "racial groups," including Ethiopian (or African), Native, "Caucasian," Malay, and Mongolian. He attempts to prove that skull size determines intellect, showing that the "Caucasian" skulls have the highest volume, which is a racist theory that will later be discredited. The skulls are still on display at the Penn Museum in Philadelphia at the time of writing, although some faculty are advocating for a rematriation process.