38 ANTHROPOLOGY. 



broader and ascends higher. An external tuberosity gives attachment to 

 the external lateral ligaments of the knee-joint. Beneath it is a groove 

 which receives the tendon of the poplitseus muscle when the joint is flexed. 

 The internal condyle {pi. 122, ßgs.S'^^ 4") is narrower, less prominent before, 

 but more prolonged behind. On its inner side is the tubercle for the at- 

 tachment of the internal lateral ligament. The posterior crucial ligament 

 is attached to the rough outer side. Posteriorly the condyles are separated 

 by a deep fossa or intercondyloid notch which lodges the crucial ligaments. 

 Anteriorly they unite in a trochlea or pulley on which the patella moves. 

 The femur thus articulates superiorly with the pelvis, anteriorly with the 

 patella, and inferiorly with the tibia. 



3. The Leg. The bones of the leg are the patella, tibia, and fibula. 



The patella, rotula, or knee-pan {ßgs. 3", 5*, 22, 23) is a small bone in 

 front of the knee-joint, triangular or heart-shaped, the base above, the apex 

 below. The anterior surface is convex and rough, the posterior covered 

 by cartilage and divided by a vertical ridge into two parts. The patella 

 slides in the trochlea of the femur; to the upper end the extensor tendons 

 are attached, while the lower is connected with the tibia by a powerful 

 ligament. 



The tibia, or shinbone (Jig. 3,m), next to the femur, is the longest bone 

 in the skeleton. It occupies the anterior and inner part of the leg ; the 

 direction, unlike that of the femur, is vertical, and the tibiae of the opposite 

 sides are parallel. The upper extremity is thick, and expanded from side 

 to side ; the circumference somewhat circular or oval, convex in front and 

 on the sides, but slightly grooved behind. The upper or femoral surface 

 (fig. 26) presents two condyles, or rather glenoid cavities, for articulating 

 with the femur. The internal is oval, and the deeper of the two ; it is also 

 larger antero-posteriorly. The external is nearly circular, and very super- 

 ficial. The two are separated by a spine, which is of a pyramidal form, and 

 is surmounted by two tubercles ; in and about the spine are inserted the 

 semi-lunar cartilages and the crucial ligaments. 



The body or shaft of the tibia is triangular ; its size diminishes from the 

 head for about two thirds down ; it then increases somewhat towards the 

 lower end. 



The lower or tarsal end (ßg. 27) is somewhat square, with an anterior 

 convex edge, covered by extensor tendons ; a posterior nearly smooth edge, 

 traversed by a groove; externally a concave triangular surface, smooth below 

 for receiving the lower end of the fibula ; internally there is a thick flat- 

 tened perpendicular process, called the internal malleolus or anJcle {ßg. 4 "). 



The ßbida {ßg. 3'"'") is very slender, and nearly as long as the tibia; il 

 is placed at the outer side of the leg, nearly vertical, with its lower end 

 inclined a little forwards; the superior or femoral end is small and circular, 

 with a slight cavity forwards, upwards, and inwards, for articulating with 

 the tuberosity on the external condyle of the tibia ; the lower or tarsal end 

 is larger than the upper ; it is elongated into a long oval process, the exter- 

 nal malleolus or ankle {ßg. 4"); the external lateral ligament arises from the 

 point of this process. 

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