Bones of the thorax

bony structure found in vertebrates

The sternum (: sternums or sterna) or breastbone is a long flat bone located in the central part of the chest. It connects to the ribs via cartilage and forms the front of the rib cage, thus helping to protect the heart, lungs, and major blood vessels from injury. Shaped roughly like a necktie, it is one of the largest and longest flat bones of the body. Its three regions are the manubrium, the body, and the xiphoid process. The word sternum originates from Ancient Greek στέρνον (stérnon) 'chest'.

The sacrum (: sacra or sacrums), in human anatomy, is a triangular bone at the base of the spine that forms by the fusing of the sacral vertebrae (S1S5) between ages 18 and 30.

The coccyx (: coccyges or coccyxes), commonly referred to as the tailbone, is the final segment of the vertebral column in all apes, and analogous structures in certain other mammals such as horses. In tailless primates (e.g. humans and other great apes) since Nacholapithecus (a Miocene hominoid), the coccyx is the remnant of a vestigial tail. In animals with bony tails, it is known as tailhead or dock, in bird anatomy as tailfan. It comprises three to five separate or fused coccygeal vertebrae below the sacrum, attached to the sacrum by a fibrocartilaginous joint, the sacrococcygeal symphysis

arrangement of bones

first cervical vertebra of the spine

vertebra of the human neck

vertebrae in the region of the lower back, below the thoracic vertebrae and above the sacral vertebrae

one of the vertebra between the cervical vertebrae and the lumbar vertebrae

space in the vertebral column formed by the vertebrae through which the spinal cord passes; it is a process of the dorsal body cavity; this canal is enclosed within the vertebral foramen of the vertebrae

small cartilaginous process (extension) of the lower part of the sternum which is usually ossified in the adult human

foramen between spinal vertebrae

anatomical part of the vertebra

synarthrotic joint formed by the articulation of the manubrium and the body of the sternum

between sternunse

projections of the vertebra

medial margin formed by the false ribs

Twelfth Thoracic Vertebra