Compare the lateral views of the two skulls below. To the left is an anatomically modern Homo sapiens represented by the Cro-Magnon 1 cranium. To the right is a Homo neanderthalensis represented by La Chapelle-aux-Saints 1. Photographs are not to scale.

Several features of the cranium distinguish the skulls of Homo sapiens from those of earlier Homo neanderthalensis found in western Europe.

The braincase in modern humans is relatively shorter, and the forehead rounder and higher. This is the result of the brain being housed higher-up and further forward in modern humans than in Neanderthals. This can be seen in the two photographs above. Track the plane of the forehead from the top of the orbits. The slope of the forehead for the modern human is nearly vertical, while there is a noticeably lower slope for the Neanderthal to the right.

The supraorbital torus (or browridges) of the Neanderthal is large and pronounced in the photograph to the right, while they are lacking in the Homo sapiens cranium on the left. At the other end of the cranium, the typical Neanderthal skull is characterized by an "occipital bun," a raised area of bone at the posterior of the skull. This can easily be seen in the photograph of La Chapelle-aux-Saints. This feature is absent in Homo sapiens.

Another major difference in the morphology of the skulls is the "prognathism" of the Neanderthal skull. The face of Homo sapiens tends to be flatter, positioned under the orbits. That is, it does not project forward beyond an imaginary plane defined by the eye sockets. Look at the skull of La Chapelle-aux-Saints 1 above, to the right. There is a marked projection (prognathism) of the region around the nose and cheek bones. We have discussed prognathism before with respect to several early human species, however the prognathism exhibited in Homo neanderthalensis is qualitatively different from these other early humans.

In the above photographs we see La Ferrassie 1 to the left, an example of Homo neanderthalensis (image reversed for comparison), and to the right is OH 24, Homo habilis. These images are not to scale. Both species exhibit a pronounced projection of the face; yet the projection exhibited by Homo habilis is generally focused on the bones of the upper jaw, below the nose. In contrast, Homo neanderthalensis shows a prognathism that originates in the region of the nose. For this reason, the prognathism in H. habilis is generally referred to as "sub-nasal" (below-the-nose) prognathism, and that in H. neanderthalensis is generally called "mid-facial" prognathism.

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