Mental Eminence
Definition
The bony chin prominence of the mandible. Scored 1 (slight, triangular, female) to 5 (pronounced, squared, male). Used both in cranial scoring and as a standalone mandibular sex indicator.
- Location
- Bony chin prominence of mandible
- Scoring range
- 1 (slight, female) to 5 (pronounced, male)
- Used for
- Sex estimation, cranial and mandibular
Common questions
Why is mental eminence useful when only the mandible survives?+
Most sexually dimorphic skull traits require the full cranium for a composite score, but mental eminence can be scored on the mandible alone, making it valuable when a jaw is recovered separately from the cranium or the skull is fragmentary.
Should mental eminence be relied on as the sole basis for sex estimation?+
No. Like other single morphological traits it carries error, particularly at the middle of the scoring range where male and female presentations overlap. It is typically combined with other cranial and mandibular indicators into a composite score for a more reliable estimate.
Related terms
- Cranial Robusticity
- The overall size and prominence of bony surface features on the skull, reflecting body size and musculature. Males are on average more...
- FORDISC
- Forensic Discriminant Computer program, developed by Ousley and Jantz at the University of Tennessee Knoxville. Performs discriminant-function analysis on user-supplied craniometric measurements...
- Glabella
- The midline prominence on the frontal bone between the superciliary arches. Scored 1 (flat, female) to 5 (highly prominent, male). Correlated with...
- Gonial Angle
- The angle at the posterior inferior corner of the mandible (gonion) where the ramus meets the body. Males: more acute and everted;...
- Mastoid Process
- The conical projection inferior to the external auditory meatus on the temporal bone. Attachment for sternocleidomastoid and splenius capitis muscles. Scored 1...
- Nuchal Crest
- The raised area on the posterior occiput at the attachment of the nuchal muscles (trapezius, semispinalis capitis). Scored 1 (smooth, female) to...
- Supra-Orbital Margin
- The bony rim forming the superior orbital border. Scored 1 (sharp and thin, female) to 5 (rounded and thick, male). Thickness reflects...
- Typicality Probability
- In FORDISC analysis, the probability that the unknown skull is a typical member of the best-matching reference group, based on Mahalanobis distance....
- Walker 2008 Five-Trait Scoring
- A standardised ordinal (1-5 scale) sex estimation system for five cranial traits: mastoid process, nuchal crest, supra-orbital margin, glabella, and mental eminence....