Policie České republiky – Kriminalistický ústav
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Sex Estimation
Sex Estimation
Sex estimation is possible only in adults in which, thanks to the sex hormones, characteristics specific either for males or females developed. Anthropologic literature provides methods how to estimate sex from particularly any bone is to be found. However, accuracy of these methods is not very high especially concerning long bones. Their morphology is influenced, besides the sex hormones, by the growth hormones. For sex estimation, the most reliable bones are the hip bones and the skull.
Sex estimation from a skull
Sex estimation from a skull has a longer tradition than sex estimation from hip bones. A male skull is usually more robust with more pronounced supraorbital ridges and sloping forehead, all muscle attachments sites are more pronounced, as well as the occipital region is more pronouncedly formed with a protruding occipital bun. A female skull is usually more gracile without pronounced supraorbital ridges, with an upright forehead, more pronounced tubera frontalia and with occipital region rather unpronounced.
Sex estimation from hip bones
Sex estimation from hip bones is more precise than that from the skull. It is because the morphology of the female pelvis, to the contrary of the male one, mirrors adaptation to pregnancy and childbirth. The differences in pelvis are easily noticeable. The bones differ also in size. When looking at the whole pelvis it is visible that the female pelvis is broader and has a round pelvic outlet while the male pelvis is generally higher than broader and the outlet is heart shaped.