The parietal eminence (parietal tuber, parietal tuberosity) is a convex, smooth eminence on the external surface of the

parietal bone The parietal bones () are two bones in the skull which, when joined at a fibrous joint, form the sides and roof of the cranium. In humans, each bone is roughly quadrilateral in form, and has two surfaces, four borders, and four angles. It is named ...

of the

skull The skull is a bone protective cavity for the brain. The skull is composed of four types of bone i.e., cranial bones, facial bones, ear ossicles and hyoid bone. However two parts are more prominent: the cranium and the mandible. In humans, t ...

. It is the site where

intramembranous ossification Intramembranous ossification is one of the two essential processes during fetal development of the gnathostome (excluding chondrichthyans such as sharks) skeletal system by which rudimentary bone tissue is created. Intramembranous ossification i ...

of the parietal bone begins during embryological development. It tends to be slightly more prominent in

women A woman is an adult female human. Prior to adulthood, a female human is referred to as a girl (a female child or adolescent). The plural ''women'' is sometimes used in certain phrases such as "women's rights" to denote female humans regardle ...

than in men, so may be used to help to identify the

sex Sex is the trait that determines whether a sexually reproducing animal or plant produces male or female gametes. Male plants and animals produce smaller mobile gametes (spermatozoa, sperm, pollen), while females produce larger ones (ova, ...

of a skull.

Additional images

File:Parietal eminence - animation01.gif, Parietal eminence shown in red File:Braus 1921 362.png, Skull showing parietal eminence as Tuber parietale

References

External links

* Bones of the head and neck {{musculoskeletal-stub