Petrous part of the temporal bone
Directed medially, forward, and a little upward, it presents a base, an apex, three surfaces, and three angles, and houses in its interior the components of the inner ear.[1] The apex, which is rough and uneven, is received into the angular interval between the posterior border of the great wing of the sphenoid bone and the basilar part of the occipital bone; it presents the anterior or internal opening of the carotid canal, and forms the postero-lateral boundary of the foramen lacerum.Above and between these two openings is an irregular depression that lodges a process of the dura mater and transmits a small vein; in the infant, this depression is represented by a large fossa, the subarcuate fossa, which extends backward as a blind tunnel under the superior semicircular canal.The anterior angle is divided into two parts—a lateral joined to the squamous part by a suture (petrosquamous), the remains of which are more or less distinct; a medial, free, which articulates with the spinous process of the sphenoid.This article incorporates text in the public domain from page 142 of the 20th edition of Gray's Anatomy (1918)
temporal boneAnatomical terms of bonesphenoidoccipital bonesinner earendocraniumsquamoustympanicmastoid partsgreat wingsphenoid bonebasilar partoccipital bonecarotid canalforamen lacerummiddle cranial fossapetrosquamous suturearcuate eminencesuperior semicircular canaltympanic cavityhiatus for greater petrosal nervepetrosal branch of the middle meningeal arterylesser superficial petrosal nervetrigeminal ganglionposterior cranial fossainternal auditory meatusbasilar arterycochleasacculeforamen singulareposterior semicircular ductutriclesubarcuate fossaLevator veli palatiniauditory tubejugular fossaaquæductus cochleæsubarachnoid spaceinternal jugularinternal jugular veininferior tympanic canaliculustympanic branchglossopharyngeal nervemastoid canaliculusauricular branch of the vagus nervejugular processvaginal processstyloid processstylomastoid foramenfacial canalfacial nervestylomastoid arterytympanomastoid fissureauricular branchvagus nervesuperior petrosal sinustentorium cerebellitrigeminal nervetensor tympaniBibcodepublic domainGray's AnatomyNeurocraniumOccipitalSquamous partExternal occipital protuberanceOccipital bunExternal occipital crestNuchal linesSuprainiac fossaNuchalCruciform eminenceInternal occipital protuberanceInternal occipital crestGroove for transverse sinusLateral partsCondyleCondyloid fossaCondylar canalHypoglossal canalJugular tuberclePharyngeal tubercleClivusForamen magnumBasionOpisthionParietalParietal eminenceTemporal lineParietal foramenSagittal sulcusSagittal keelSagittal crestFrontalFrontal sutureFrontal eminenceSuperciliary archesGlabellaSupraorbital foramenBrow ridgeForamen cecumZygomatic processFrontal crestOrbital partEthmoidal notchFossa for lacrimal glandTrochlear foveaFrontal sinusFrontonasal ductTemporalArticular tubercleSuprameatal triangleMandibular fossaPetrotympanic fissureMastoid partMastoid foramenMastoid processMastoid cellsMastoid notchOccipital grooveSigmoid sulcusMastoid antrumAditusHiatusCochlear aqueductInferior tympanic