The Races Of Man And Their Distribution

This excerpt from a book about Alfred Cort Haddon's work on race describes the anthropologist's findings on physical differences between human beings. Haddon used these differences to distinguish between different races, and he also suggested some reasons for the geographical distribution of these races.

The Cambridge anthropological expedition of 1898-9 to the Torres Strait and New Guinea, led by the zoologist and anthropologist Alfred Cort Haddon (1855-1940), marked an epoch in field methodology. This edition, published in 1924, examines some of the major physical differences between human beings that Haddon used to distinguish race, looking at skin colour, hair, stature, nose, face and head form, and is thorough and wide-ranging in offering examples from throughout the world. He also suggests some reasons for the geographical distribution of the races. This was a new approach, though Haddon's findings are necessarily condensed here, providing a valuable work of reference rather than a full study. Forming the basis for a larger work, this book is is an important example of early scientific anthropology, while Haddon's curatorial work in the Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology in Cambridge made this a primary centre for anthropological study and research.