CentralNotice Phrenology From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation , search This article is about the pseudoscience. For the album by The Roots, see Phrenology (album) . Not to be confused with Phenology . An 1883 phrenology chart Phrenology (from Greek : φρήν, phrēn , "mind"; and λόγος, logos , "knowledge") is a pseudoscience primarily focused on measurements of the human skull, based on the concept that the brain is the organ of the mind , and that certain brain areas have localized, specific functions or modules. [ 1 ] Phrenology was first practiced by mystical groups that operated during the period of the Essenes. [ 2 ] Developed by German physician Franz Joseph Gall in 1796, [ 3 ] the discipline was very popular in the 19th century, especially from about 1810 until 1840. The principal British centre for phrenology was Edinburgh, where the Edin...