Phrenology
The practice of Phrenology, much like Physgionomy, was based on using physical details to determine a person’s character. Instead of studying facial features like Physgionomy, this practice focused on studying skulls. Phrenologists believed that the human brain was separated by sections devoted to different mental tasks and traits. They thought the brain would take different shapes based on propensity towards certain characteristics and that in turn the skull would shape accordingly. Thus, by following brain diagrams and feeling for fluctuations in the shape of a patient’s head, attributes could be exposed by looking at- or feeling- a patient’s skull shape.
German neuroanatomist and physiologist Franz Joseph Gall is recognized as “The Father of Phrenology.” After studying skulls of his classmates, prison inmates, and lunatic asylum residents, he presented the idea of the brain containing 27 distinct areas of “fundamental faculties.”
Johann Gaspar Spurzheim, who was an assistant to Gall in Vienna, studied the practice further and added additional faculties to Gall's original list of 27, bringing the total up to 35, which became the standard for phrenological charts.
The American popularity of phrenology can be attributed to the Fowler & Wells Company, which made a business out of reading heads and selling merchandise. Brothers Orson and Niles Fowler joined with brother-in-law Samuel Wells to establish the business in New York City in 1835. With the slogan “Know Thyself,” the business began publishing The Phrenological Journal and soon offered lectures and readings from their office. The popular phrenology bust, still sold today, was created as both a souvenir and learning tool.
The company eventually expanded to include a school, The American Phrenological Institution, and focused on acquiring skulls and skull casts for its large “Phrenological Cabinet.” The cabinet became a museum attraction in New York City and housed over 2,000 specimens of skulls or models from around the world, including skulls of indigenous people, executed criminals, and models of famous men, including George Washington and Napoleon.
In the Victorian Era, phrenology entered popular culture and was a regular topic in magazines, newspapers, and even fashion. Women at the time were known to model their hairstyles in a way to attract partners, since the "parental love" zone was said to be at the back of the skull.
Phrenology was debunked as a pseudoscience by the early 20th Century, becoming more of a parlor game or novelty.