Where are the palatine bones?
Palatine bone Palatine bone The palatine bones () are two irregular bones of the facial skeleton in many animal species. Together with the maxillae they comprise the hard palate. ("Palate" is derived from the Latin "palatum".) The palatine bones are situated at the back of the nasal cavity between the maxilla and the pterygoid process of the spenoid bone. They contribute to the walls of three cavities: the floor and lateral walls of the nasal cavity, the roof of the mouth, and the floor of the orbits. They help to form the pterygopalatine and pterygoid fossae, and the inferior orbital fissures. Each
Palatine bone more anteriorly with the maxillae at the transverse palatine suture. The human palatine articulates with six bones: the sphenoid, ethmoid, maxilla, inferior nasal concha, vomer and opposite palatine. There are two important foramina in the palatine bones that transmit nerves and blood vessels to this region: the greater and lesser palatine. The larger greater palatine foramen is located in the posterolateral region of each of the palatine bones, usually at the apex of the maxillary third molar. The greater palatine foramen transmits the greater palatine nerve and blood vessels. A smaller opening nearby, the lesser palatine foramen, transmits the lesser