Anatomically, the human skull can be divided into 2 parts, and the skull model therefore shows the following:
1) The braincase (neurocranium), which is intended to enclose the brain and the hearing-equilibrium organ
2) The facial skeleton (viscerocranium) which surrounds the nasal cavity and forms the tooth-bearing framework around the oral cavity. The 32 teeth are also included
The braincase consists of 8 bones. There are 4 unpaired (the frontal, sphenoid, sphenoid and occipital bones) and 2 paired (the occipital and temporal bones). All these bones as well as sutures can be identified on the skull model.
The facial skeleton includes 6 paired bones (the maxilla, palatine, cheekbone, nasal bone, lacrimal bone, and lower conchbone) and 3 unpaired bones called the mandible, the ploughshare, and the zygomatic bone (some do not count the zygomatic bone as part of the facial skeleton). All these bones and sutures can also be identified on the skull model. NB: The hyoid bone is also included in the facial skeleton but cannot be seen on this skull model.
The human skull contains many holes and channels containing vessels and nerves. Overall, there are connections between the braincase and the neck, to and from the eye socket, to and from the pterygo-palatine fossa and to and from the nasal cavity.
On this skull model, most holes and canals are visible, but not all.
The model also includes the 7 cervical vertebrae (including the intervening discs) as well as a piece of the vertebral artery, nerve roots and spinal cord that runs up to and including the pons in the brainstem.
