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Cranium (Skull)

by Corinth

Science, Biology

File ( 6MB )

Free

Description

The **cranium (skull)** is the skeletal structure of the head that supports the face and protects the brain. It is subdivided into the facial bones and the brain case, or cranial vault. The facial bones underlie the facial structures, form the nasal cavity, enclose the eyeballs, and support the teeth of the upper and lower jaws. The rounded brain case surrounds and protects the brain and houses the middle and inner ear structures.



In the adult, the skull consists of 22 individual bones, 21 of which are immobile and united into a single unit. The 22nd bone is the mandible (lower jaw), which is the only moveable bone of the skull.



*LICENSES AND ATTRIBUTIONS

CC licensed content, Shared previously, The Skull, Authored by: OpenStax College. License: CC BY: Attribution. License Terms: Download for free at http://cnx.org/contents/1w-m01MB@4/The-Skull*

## Keywords
skull skeleton head lower turbinate bone of the upper jaw sleep nasal furrows face tear olfactory frontal parietal temporal occipital part of the brain storey salient facial