Name the lit marking of the skull, then say what passes through it, sits in it or attaches to it.
Skull Bone Markings Quiz
Name Date
Which marking is this?
1 of 5
More options
Write the name of each numbered marking, then its structure.Answer key
Crista galli · a fold of the covering of the brain (the falx cerebri)
Cribriform plate · branches of the olfactory nerve (I)
Anterior cranial fossa · the frontal lobes of the brain
Sella turcica · the pituitary gland
Middle cranial fossa · the temporal lobes of the brain
Optic canal · the optic nerve (II)
Superior orbital fissure · the nerves that move the eye (III, IV and VI)
Foramen rotundum · the maxillary nerve (V2)
Foramen ovale · the mandibular nerve (V3)
Foramen spinosum · the middle meningeal artery
Foramen lacerum · cartilage, with only small vessels
Petrous ridge · the middle and inner ear, inside it
Internal acoustic meatus · the facial and vestibulocochlear nerves (VII and VIII)
Jugular foramen · the internal jugular vein and nerves IX, X and XI
Hypoglossal canal · the hypoglossal nerve (XII)
Foramen magnum · the spinal cord, where it meets the brainstem
Posterior cranial fossa · the cerebellum
Zygomatic arch · a chewing muscle, the masseter
Mastoid process · neck muscles such as the sternocleidomastoid
Styloid process · several small muscles and ligaments
Mandibular fossa · the condyle of the mandible
Carotid canal · the internal carotid artery
Occipital condyle · the first vertebra of the neck (the atlas)
Mandibular foramen · the nerve and vessels of the lower teeth
Coronoid process of the mandible · a chewing muscle, the temporalis
Cranial floor, front: Drawn for this site on 2026-09-30 from plain geometry. Licence: own work. Openings of the sphenoid: Drawn for this site on 2026-09-30 from plain geometry. Licence: own work. Cranial floor, back: Drawn for this site on 2026-09-30 from plain geometry. Licence: own work. Side of the skull: Drawn for this site, 2026-09-20. Licence: own work. Base, from below: Drawn for this site, 2026-09-20. Licence: own work. Mandible, inside: Drawn for this site on 2026-10-04 as outlines in code. Licence: own work.
Each numbered ring is a button. Use the arrow keys to move between them and Enter to choose. Names are read out in Study, and once a marking is answered.
Crista galli(structure: a fold of the covering of the brain (the falx cerebri))A projection of the ethmoid bone. Its name means rooster's comb.
Cribriform plate(structure: branches of the olfactory nerve (I))Part of the ethmoid bone, on each side of the crista galli. Cribriform means like a sieve.
Anterior cranial fossa(structure: the frontal lobes of the brain)The shallowest of the three fossae. It lies over the orbits.
Sella turcica(structure: the pituitary gland)Sella turcica means Turkish saddle.
Middle cranial fossa(structure: the temporal lobes of the brain)Runs from the sphenoid's lesser wing back to the petrous ridge.
Openings of the sphenoid 6
Optic canal(structure: the optic nerve (II))It leads forward into the back of the orbit.
Superior orbital fissure(structure: the nerves that move the eye (III, IV and VI))A gap between the lesser and greater wings of the sphenoid. It opens into the orbit.
Foramen rotundum(structure: the maxillary nerve (V2))Rotundum means round.
Foramen ovale(structure: the mandibular nerve (V3))The largest of the three holes in a row.
Foramen spinosum(structure: the middle meningeal artery)The last and smallest of the three holes in a row.
Foramen lacerum(structure: cartilage, with only small vessels)An irregular opening just below where the carotid canal ends.
Cranial floor, back 6
Petrous ridge(structure: the middle and inner ear, inside it)The petrous part of the temporal bone. It divides the middle from the posterior cranial fossa and holds the middle and inner ear.
Internal acoustic meatus(structure: the facial and vestibulocochlear nerves (VII and VIII))An opening inside the cranial cavity. It is on the inner side of the petrous ridge.
Jugular foramen(structure: the internal jugular vein and nerves IX, X and XI)It lies between the temporal bone and the occipital bone.
Hypoglossal canal(structure: the hypoglossal nerve (XII))A short canal through the occipital bone.
Foramen magnum(structure: the spinal cord, where it meets the brainstem)Foramen magnum means great opening. It is in the occipital bone.
Posterior cranial fossa(structure: the cerebellum)The deepest of the three fossae, in the occipital bone.
Side of the skull 3
Zygomatic arch(structure: a chewing muscle, the masseter)Two bones build it. A process of the temporal bone meets a process of the zygomatic bone.
Mastoid process(structure: neck muscles such as the sternocleidomastoid)A large projection of the temporal bone. You can feel it behind the earlobe.
Styloid process(structure: several small muscles and ligaments)A slender, downward projection of the temporal bone. It is named for its likeness to a stylus.
Base, from below 3
Mandibular fossa(structure: the condyle of the mandible)A hollow in the temporal bone, part of the jaw joint.
Carotid canal(structure: the internal carotid artery)A tunnel through the temporal bone that turns as it climbs.
Occipital condyle(structure: the first vertebra of the neck (the atlas))One on each side of the foramen magnum. They support the skull on the vertebral column.
Mandible, inside 2
Mandibular foramen(structure: the nerve and vessels of the lower teeth)Opening of a tunnel running forward inside the body of the mandible.
Coronoid process of the mandible(structure: a chewing muscle, the temporalis)A flat, pointed projection at the front of the ramus.
Cranial floor, front, the list: A panel of skull-bone-markings-quiz. It shows part of this page's own drawing of the cranial floor through its own viewBox. Every name and detail line was checked on 2026-09-30 against OpenStax Anatomy and Physiology 2e, section 7.2 The Skull, https://openstax.org/books/anatomy-and-physiology-2e/pages/7-2-the-skull, and against Wikipedia, text only: List of foramina of the human body, Anterior, Mi Licence: own work The drawing: Drawn for this site on 2026-09-30 from plain geometry; nothing traced. Licence: own work
Openings of the sphenoid, the list: A panel of skull-bone-markings-quiz. It shows part of this page's own drawing of the cranial floor through its own viewBox. Every name and detail line was checked on 2026-09-30 against OpenStax Anatomy and Physiology 2e, section 7.2 The Skull, https://openstax.org/books/anatomy-and-physiology-2e/pages/7-2-the-skull, and against Wikipedia, text only: List of foramina of the human body, Anterior, Mi Licence: own work The drawing: Drawn for this site on 2026-09-30 from plain geometry; nothing traced. Licence: own work
Cranial floor, back, the list: A panel of skull-bone-markings-quiz. It shows part of this page's own drawing of the cranial floor through its own viewBox. Every name and detail line was checked on 2026-09-30 against OpenStax Anatomy and Physiology 2e, section 7.2 The Skull, https://openstax.org/books/anatomy-and-physiology-2e/pages/7-2-the-skull, and against Wikipedia, text only: List of foramina of the human body, Anterior, Mi Licence: own work The drawing: Drawn for this site on 2026-09-30 from plain geometry; nothing traced. Licence: own work
Side of the skull, the list: A panel of skull-bone-markings-quiz. It shows part of the drawing of skull-labeling-quiz through its own viewBox; the point and the lit shape of each marking are read from data/skull-labeling-quiz.json, and the wording is this page's own. Every name and detail line was checked on 2026-09-30 against OpenStax Anatomy and Physiology 2e, section 7.2 The Skull, https://openstax.org/books/anatomy-and-ph Licence: own work The drawing: Drawn for this site, 2026-09-20. Own original line drawing built from measured proportions. Looked at for accuracy only, nothing traced or copied: three public-domain plates drawn by Henry Vandyke Carter for Gray's Anatomy, 1918 edition, on Wikimedia Commons (plate 190 the skull from the front, plate 188 the side view, plate 187 the external base), and the text of the Wikipedia articles Vomer, For Licence: own work
Base, from below, the list: A panel of skull-bone-markings-quiz. It shows part of the drawing of skull-labeling-quiz through its own viewBox; the point and the lit shape of each marking are read from data/skull-labeling-quiz.json, and the wording is this page's own. Every name and detail line was checked on 2026-09-30 against OpenStax Anatomy and Physiology 2e, section 7.2 The Skull, https://openstax.org/books/anatomy-and-ph Licence: own work The drawing: Drawn for this site, 2026-09-20. Own original line drawing built from measured proportions. Looked at for accuracy only, nothing traced or copied: three public-domain plates drawn by Henry Vandyke Carter for Gray's Anatomy, 1918 edition, on Wikimedia Commons (plate 190 the skull from the front, plate 188 the side view, plate 187 the external base), and the text of the Wikipedia articles Vomer, For Licence: own work
Mandible, inside, the list: A panel of skull-bone-markings-quiz. It shows part of the drawing of mandible-labeling-quiz through its own viewBox; the point and the lit shape of each marking are read from data/mandible-labeling-quiz.json, and the wording is this page's own. Every name and detail line was checked on 2026-09-30 against OpenStax Anatomy and Physiology 2e, section 7.2 The Skull, https://openstax.org/books/anatomy- Licence: own work The drawing: Drawn for this site on 2026-10-04 as outlines in code. One outline serves both views, the inside view being its mirror image: it follows Gray's Anatomy of the Human Body, 20th edition (1918), figure 176 (Mandible, outer surface, side view), drawn by Henry Vandyke Carter, public domain (Wikimedia Commons, file Gray176.png), with the notch a little shallower and the neck a little narrower. The inner Licence: own work
How it works
This skull bone markings quiz, or cranial bone markings quiz, lights one foramen, fossa, ridge or process on a skull drawing. Name it, then pick what passes through it, sits in it or attaches to it.
Read the full guide
Six drawings, one round
Three drawings show the floor of the cranial cavity from above: the front half, the openings of the sphenoid enlarged, and the back half. Three more show the side of the skull, its base from below and the inside of the mandible. As a skull landmarks quiz or skull features quiz, a fossa is matched to what sits in it and a process to what attaches.
Every marking takes two answers
As a skull foramen quiz it asks the name of an opening, then what it carries. The optic canal carries the optic nerve, the foramen ovale the mandibular nerve, and the foramen spinosum the middle meningeal artery. For every skull foramen labeled with what it carries, open the list under the quiz.
Rotundum, ovale, spinosum: the three holes run in a line backward and outward across the middle cranial fossa, in that order.
Cribriform means like a sieve: branches of the olfactory nerve pass through its many small holes.
Questions and answers
What are the bone markings of the skull?
The openings, hollows and projections of its bones: foramina, canals and fissures that let nerves and vessels through, hollows such as the mandibular fossa, and projections such as the mastoid and styloid processes, where muscles attach.
What passes through the foramen magnum?
The spinal cord, where it meets the brainstem. The foramen magnum is the very large opening in the occipital bone at the base of the skull, with an occipital condyle on each side of it.
What passes through the jugular foramen?
The internal jugular vein, which carries blood out of the skull, and three cranial nerves: the glossopharyngeal (IX), the vagus (X) and the accessory (XI). The opening lies between the temporal bone and the occipital bone.
What are the three cranial fossae?
The anterior, middle and posterior cranial fossae, three hollows in the floor of the cranial cavity, each deeper than the one in front. The lesser wing of the sphenoid divides the first two, and the petrous ridge the last two.