Physiognomy

AbstractGall considered his new science a part of physiognomy, the idea that physical features are revealing of character. This idea, accepted by Hippocrates and promoted by the Aristotelians, can also be found in Galen’s influential writings from the second century ad, as well as in later books with pictures of men having features like cows and lions and personalities to match. Lavater’s well-illustrated physiognomy books from the 1770s were still very popular when Gall developed his doctrine. But unlike his predecessors, who he depreciated, Gall focused entirely on the head, and related cranial features to distinct higher brain parts, which he associated with different functions. In brief, his physiognomy, with its emphasis on the brain and its functions, represented a major break with past formulations and was presented as revolutionary.