The supraorbital ridge, or brow ridge, refer to a bony ridge located above the eye sockets of all primates. In Homo sapiens sapiens (modern humans) the eyebrows are located on their lower margin.
Other terms in use are:
The size of these ridges varies also between different species of primates, either living or fossil. The closest living relatives of humans, the great apes, have relatively pronounced supraorbital ridges, while in modern humans it...
more
The supraorbital ridge, or brow ridge, refer to a bony ridge located above the eye sockets of all primates. In Homo sapiens sapiens (modern humans) the eyebrows are located on their lower margin.
Other terms in use are:
The size of these ridges varies also between different species of primates, either living or fossil. The closest living relatives of humans, the great apes, have relatively pronounced supraorbital ridges, while in modern humans it is relatively reduced. The fossil record indicates that the supraorbital ridge in early homo was reduced as the cranial vault grew and became positioned vertically, above the face.
Some paleoanthropologists distinguish between torus and ridge. In anatomy, a torus is a projecting shelf of bone. Fossil hominids, in this theory, have the torus, but modern humans only have the ridge.
The brow ridge is a thick piece of bone on top of the eyes. Its purpose is to reinforce the weaker bones of the face in much the same way that the chin of modern...
less