Lecture Notes on Skull Markings

Sutures of the Skull

• Coronal Suture
• Squamous Suture
• Lambdoid Suture
• Saddle Suture
• Sutures are joints that hold bones of the skull together.

Temporal Bone Markings

• Temporal Squama: Flat part of the temporal bone.
• Zygomatic Process: Juts out, touches the zygomatic bone.
• External Auditory Meatus: Tube-like opening for the ear.
• Mastoid Process: Rounded, breast-shaped process.
• Styloid Process: Pointed process.
• Petrus Portion: Ridge inside the cranium.
• Internal Auditory Meatus: Another opening in the temporal bone.

Occipital Bone Markings

• External Occipital Protuberance: Bony protrusion.
• Foramen Magnum: Large hole for the spinal cord.
• Occipital Condyles: Articulate with the atlas (first cervical vertebra).

Frontal Bone Markings

• Superior Border of the Orbit: Eye socket border.
• Supraorbital Margin: Above the orbit.
• Supraorbital Foramen/Notches: Vary between skulls.

Ethmoid Bone Markings

• Perpendicular Plate: Part of the nasal septum.
• Middle Nasal Concha: Part of the ethmoid bone.
• Crista Galli: Pointy bit that resembles a rooster's comb.
• Cribriform Plate: Contains olfactory foramina for olfactory nerves.

Sphenoid Bone Markings

• Lesser Wing: Upper part of the sphenoid.
• Greater Wing: Part of the middle cranial fossa.
• Sella Turcica: "Turkish saddle" housing the pituitary gland.

Facial Bone Markings

• Lacrimal Bone: Contains the lacrimal fossa for tear drainage.
• Maxilla:
  • Infraorbital Foramina: Below the orbit.
  • Incisive Foramina: Near incisors.
  • Palatine Process: Part of the palate.

Mandible Markings

• Mental Foramina: Two openings on the mandible.
• Ramus: Vertical part of the mandible.
• Angle and Body: Other parts of the mandible.
• Condylar Process/Mandibular Condyle: Forms part of the joint.
• Coronoid Process: Pointed like a crown.

Zygomatic Bone Markings

• Temporal Process: Articulates with the temporal bone.
• Zygomatic Process: Part of the zygomatic arch.