ELASTIC TISSUE OF THE SKIN- 135 



rete mucosum is formed by the papillary portion (Papil- 

 larkorper), by which we are to understand not only the 

 papillae themselves, but also a continuous layer of cori- 

 aceous substance running along horizontally beneath 

 them ; it is under this that the coarse elastic networks 

 begin, whilst only fine elastic fibres, and these in a fasci- 

 cular form, ascend into the papillae themselves, at the 

 base of which they begin to form fine and close-meshed 

 networks (Figs. 16, P, P; 83, A, e; D, c). These latter 

 are connected inferiorly with the very thick and coarse 

 elastic network which pervades the middle and toughest 

 portion of the skin, the corium proper ; below this comes 

 a more coarsely meshed network within the less firm, 

 but nevertheless very solid, undermost layer of the cutis, 

 which passes inferiorly into the adipose or subcutaneous 

 tissue. 



In the places where such a transformation into elastic 

 tissue has taken place, there are frequently scarcely any 

 distinct cells to be found. This is the case not merely 

 in the skin, but also especially in certain parts of the 

 middle coat of arteries, and particularly in the aorta. 

 Here the network of elastic fibres attains such a prepon- 

 derance, that it is only with great care that minute cellu- 

 lar elements can here and there be detected. In the 

 skin, on the other hand, in addition to the elastic fibres, 

 a somewhat greater number of small corpuscles are 

 found, which have retained their cellular nature, though 

 they are certainly so extremely minute that they must 

 be specially sought for. They generally lie in the inter- 

 stices of the large-meshed networks, where they either 

 form a system with perfect anastomoses and small 

 meshes, or else appear in the shape of more isolated, 

 roundish bodies, in consequence of the individual cells 

 not being very distinctly connected with one another. 

 This is especially the case in the papillary portion of the 



