Cranial capacity

Cranial capacity is a measure of the volume of the interior of the cranium (also called the braincase or brainpan) of those vertebrates who have both a cranium and a brain. The most commonly used unit of measure is the cubic centimetre or cc. The volume of the cranium is used as a rough indicator of the size of the brain, and this in turn is used as a rough indicator of the potential intelligence of the organism. However, larger cranial capacity is not always indicative of a more intelligent organism, since larger capacities are required for controlling larger more muscular bodies, or in some cases are an adaptive feature for life in a colder environment. The largest human cranium on record belongs to Robert Vollmar, age 21.

Examples of cranial capacity:
 * Orangutans: 275–500 cc
 * Chimpanzees: 275–500 cc
 * Gorillas: 340–752 cc
 * Humans: 1100–1700 cc
 * Neanderthals: 1200–1700 cc

Examples of early hominids: