Dental arch relations analysed in a 14th century fossil skull of the Sao tribe, Cameroon.

Dental occlusal relations are rarely reported in paleo-anthropology. The manipulation of hemi-arch replicas, as well as the superimposition of drawings on calques traced from photographs, facilitated the description of the intra- and interarch relations. The occlusal interarch confrontation and the intermolar relation were observed and assessed in the horizontal, frontal and sagittal planes. Some measurements were helpful in the functional study. On the basis of knowledge in mandible kinematics a movement envelope of the first molar displacement during mastication was proposed. The dentition studied here was highly regular. It was a fine example of balanced wear for post-canine sectors. In spite of the lower canine extrusion, due to tribal mutilation of anterior teeth and to subsequent labret wearing, the interarch relations seemed not to have been altered.