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sagittal suture
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sagittal suture

anatomy

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characteristic of human cranial surface

  • human skeletal system
    In human skeleton: Interior of the cranium

    …front to back, along the sagittal suture, the seam between the two parietal bones, is a shallow depression—the groove for the superior longitudinal venous sinus, a large channel for venous blood. A number of depressions on either side of it mark the sites of the pacchionian bodies, structures that permit…

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element of cranial joint

  • knee joint
    In joint: Fibrous joints

    …and the newborn child, the sagittal suture, which separates the right and left halves of the roof of the skull, is quite wide and markedly so at its anterior and posterior ends. This enables one of the halves to glide over the other during the passage of the child through…

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found in parietal bone

  • In parietal bone

    …top of the head (sagittal suture) and form a roof for the cranium. The parietal bone forms in membrane (i.e., without a cartilaginous precursor); the sagittal suture closes between ages 22 and 31. In primates that have large jaws and well-developed chewing muscles (e.g., gorillas and baboons), the parietal…

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skull
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human skull human skull inferior view of the human skull internal surface of the human skull The Human Body replica skull of Lucy Lateral view of an Australopithecus africanus skull found at Sterkfontein, S.Af. reconstructed replica of the Taung skull reconstructed replica of “Mrs. Ples,” an Australopithecus africanus skull Reconstructed skull of Peking man, based on Homo erectus specimens found at Zhoukoudian, China, and dated to approximately 230,000–770,000 years ago.
Quizzes
Male muscle, man flexing arm, bicep curl.
Facts You Should Know: The Human Body Quiz
Bones of the wrist and hand: dorsal view. skeletal system, human anatomy, appendage, hand bones, wrist bones, metacarpal bones, finger bones, phalanges.
Human Bones Quiz
full human skeleton
The Skeletal Puzzle
Superficial arteries and veins of face and scalp, cardiovascular system, human anatomy, (Netter replacement project - SSC)
The Human Body
Muscles of facial expression, human anatomy, (Netter replacement project - SSC). Human face, human head.
Characteristics of the Human Body
human skull
human skull Lateral and anterior views of a human skull.

skull

anatomy
Also known as: neurocranium
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The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
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Related Topics:
jaw
lachrymal bone
cranium
craniometry
amastoid skull
human skull
human skullBase of a human skull.

skull, skeletal framework of the head of vertebrates, composed of bones or cartilage, which form a unit that protects the brain and some sense organs. The upper jaw, but not the lower, is part of the skull. The human cranium, the part that contains the brain, is globular and relatively large in comparison with the face. In most other animals the facial portion of the skull, including the upper teeth and the nose, is larger than the cranium. In humans the skull is supported by the highest vertebra, called the atlas, permitting nodding motion. The atlas turns on the next-lower vertebra, the axis, to allow for side-to-side motion.

inferior view of the human skull
1 of 2
inferior view of the human skull
internal surface of the human skull
2 of 2
internal surface of the human skullThe internal surface of the human cranium.

In humans the base of the cranium is the occipital bone, which has a central opening (foramen magnum) to admit the spinal cord. The parietal and temporal bones form the sides and uppermost portion of the dome of the cranium, and the frontal bone forms the forehead; the cranial floor consists of the sphenoid and ethmoid bones. The facial area includes the zygomatic, or malar, bones (cheekbones), which join with the temporal and maxillary bones to form the zygomatic arch below the eye socket; the palatine bone; and the maxillary, or upper jaw, bones. The nasal cavity is formed by the vomer and the nasal, lachrymal, and turbinate bones. In infants the sutures (joints) between the various skull elements are loose, but with age they fuse together. Many mammals, such as the dog, have a sagittal crest down the centre of the skull; this provides an extra attachment site for the temporal muscles, which close the jaws.

The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica This article was most recently revised and updated by Rick Livingston.
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