Axial & Appendicular Skeleton

Front 1

Axial Skeleton

Back 1

Consists of the skull, bony thorax (rib cage), and vertebral column.

Front 2

Appendicular Skeleton

Back 2

Contains the pelvic and pectoral girdles as well as the upper and lower limbs.

Front 3

Facial Bones (14)

Back 3

made up of 14 bones, of which only the mandible and vomer are unpaired.

Maxillary (2)
Nasal (2)
Zygomatic (2)
Lacrimal (2)
Palatine (2)
Inferior Nasal Conchae (2)
Vomer
Mandible

As a rule, the facial skeleton of men is more elongated than that of women. Woman's faces tend to be rounder and less angular.

Front 4

Cranial Bones (8)

Back 4

consists of 8 bones:

Parietal (2)
Temporal (2)
Frontal
Occipital
Sphenoid
Ethmoid

Together, these construct the brain's protective bony "helmet." Because its superior aspect is curved, the cranium is self-bracing. This allows the bones to be thin, and like an eggshell, the cranium is remarkably strong for its weight.

Front 5

Frontal Bone

Back 5

shell-shaped, forms the anterior cranium. It articulates posteriorly with the paired parietal bones via the prominent coronal suture.

Front 6

Parietal Bones (2)

Back 6

The two large bones are curved, rectangular bones that form most of the superior and lateral aspects of the skull; hence they form the bulk of the cranial vault. The four largest sutures occur where the parietal bones articulate (form a joint) with other cranial bones.

Front 7

Temporal Bones (2)

Back 7

The two bones best viewed on the lateral skull surface. They lie inferior to the parietal bones and meet them at the squamous sutures. The temporal bones form the inferolateral aspects of the skull and parts of the cranial base. The use of the terms temple and temporal, from the Latin word temporum, meaning "time" came about because gray hairs, a sign of time's passing, usually appear first at the temple.

Front 8

Occipital Bone

Back 8

forms most the skull's posterior wall and base. It articulates anteriorly with the paired parietal and temporal bones via the lambdoid and occipitomastoid sutures, respectively. The basilar part of the occipital bone also joins with the sphenoid bone in the cranial base.

Front 9

Sphenoid Bone

Back 9

located inferior to the sphenoparietal suture. The sphenoid and parts of the frontal, temporal and occipital bones make up the floor of the cranium. The sphenoid is unique in that it is a single bone spanning the whole cranium floor but it is only visible on the lateral surface of the skull anterior to the temporal bone and in the back wall of the eye orbit (socket).

Front 10

Ethmoid Bone

Back 10

delicate bone with a complex shape. Lying between the sphenoid and the nasal bones of the face, it is the most deeply situated bone of the skull. It forms most of the bony area between the nasal cavity and the orbits.

Front 11

Coronal Suture

Back 11

where the parietal bones meet the frontal bone anteriorly.

Front 12

Sagittal Suture

Back 12

where the parietal bones meet superiorly at the cranial midline.

Front 13

Lambdoid Suture

Back 13

where the parietal bones meet the occipital bone posteriorly.

Front 14

Squamous Suture

Back 14

where a parietal and temporal bone meet at the lateral aspect of the skull.

Front 15

Sphenoparietal Suture

Back 15

linked by the squamous and coronal sutures.

Front 16

Mandible (lower jaw Bone)

Back 16

U-shaped mandible, is the largest, strongest bone of the face. It has a body, which forms the chin, and two upright rami (rami=branches). Each ramus meets the body posteriorly at a mandibular angle. At the superior margin of each ramus are two processes separated by the mandibular notch. The anterior coronoid process is an insertion point for the large temporalis muscle that elevates the lower jaw during chewing. The posterior condylar process articulates with the mandibular fossa of the temporal bone, forming the temporomandibular joint on the same side.

Front 17

Maxillae or Maxilla (2)

Back 17

fused medially, form the upper jaw and the central portion of the facial skeleton. All facial bones except the mandible articulate with the maxillae. Hence, the maxillae are considered the keystone bones of the facial skeleton.

Front 18

Zygomatic Bones (2)

Back 18

irregularly shaped bones are commonly called the cheekbones. They articulate with the zygomatic processes of the temporal bones posteriorly, the Zygomatic processes of the maxillae anteriorly. The Zygomatic bones form the prominences of the cheeks and part of the inferolateral margins of the orbits.

Front 19

Nasal Bones (2)

Back 19

thin, basically rectangular bones are fused medially, forming the bridge of the nose. They articulate with the frontal bone superiorly, the maxillary bones laterally, and the perpendicular plate of the Ethmoid bone posteriorly. Inferiorly they attach to the cartilages that form most of the skeleton of the external nose.

Front 20

Lacrimal Bones (2)

Back 20

delicate, fingernail-shaped bones contribute to the medial walls of each orbit. They articulate with the frontal bone superiorly, the Ethmoid bone posteriorly, and the maxillae anteriorly. Each lacrimal bone contains a deep groove that helps form a lacrimal fossa. The lacrimal fossa houses the lacrimal sac, part of the passageway that allows tears to drain from the eye surface into the nasal cavity (lacrima=tears).

Front 21

Inferior Nasal Conchae (2)

Back 21

The paired, thin, curved bones in the nasal cavity. They project medially from the lateral walls of the nasal cavity, just inferior to the middle nasal conchae of the Ethmoid bone. They are the largest of the three pairs of conchae and, like the others, they form part of the lateral walls of the nasal cavity.

Front 22

Palatine Bones (2)

Back 22

L-shaped bone is fashioned from two bony plates, the horizontal and perpendicular, and has three important articular processes, the pyramidal, sphenoidal, and orbital. The horizontal plates, joined at the median palatine suture, complete the posterior portion of the hard palate. The superiorly projecting perpendicular (vertical) plates form part of the posterolateral walls of the nasal cavity and a small part of the orbits.

Front 23

Vomer

Back 23

slender, plow-shaped bone lies in the nasal cavity, where it forms part of the nasal septum.