# What is the zygomatic bone?

Gray’s Anatomy (1918) describes the zygomatic bone as follows: The zygomatic bone is small and quadrangular, and is situated at the upper and lateral part of the face: it forms the prominence of the cheek, part of the lateral wall and floor of the orbit, and parts of the temporal and infratemporal fossæ .

## What it means

- The zygomatic bone is small and quadrangular, and is situated at the upper and lateral part of the face: it forms the prominence of the cheek, part of the lateral wall and floor of the orbit, and parts of the temporal and infratemporal fossæ . It presents a malar and a temporal surface; four processes, the frontosphenoidal, orbital, maxillary, and temporal; and four borders. Surfaces.
- —The malar surface is convex and perforated near its center by a small aperture, the zygomaticofacial foramen, for the passage of the zygomaticofacial nerve and vessels; below this foramen is a slight elevation, which gives origin to the Zygomaticus.
- The temporal surface , directed backward and medialward, is concave, presenting medially a rough, triangular area, for articulation with the maxilla, and laterally a smooth, concave surface, the upper part of which forms the anterior boundary of the temporal fossa, the lower a part of the infratemporal fossa. Near the center of this surface is the zygomaticotemporal foramen for the transmission of the zygomaticotemporal nerve.

## Sources

- [Gray's Anatomy of the Human Body (1918)](https://www.bartleby.com/lit-hub/anatomy-of-the-human-body/5b-4-the-zygomatic-bone/)

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