There are three cuneiform ("wedge-shaped")

bone A bone is a rigid organ that constitutes part of the skeleton in most vertebrate animals. Bones protect the various other organs of the body, produce red and white blood cells, store minerals, provide structure and support for the body, ...

s in the

human Humans (''Homo sapiens'') or modern humans are the most common and widespread species of primate, and the last surviving species of the genus ''Homo''. They are Hominidae, great apes characterized by their Prehistory of nakedness and clothing ...

foot The foot (: feet) is an anatomical structure found in many vertebrates. It is the terminal portion of a limb which bears weight and allows locomotion. In many animals with feet, the foot is an organ at the terminal part of the leg made up o ...

: * the first or medial cuneiform * the second or intermediate cuneiform, also known as the middle cuneiform * the third or lateral cuneiform They are located between the

navicular bone The navicular bone is a small bone found in the feet of most mammals. Human anatomy The navicular bone in humans is one of the tarsus (skeleton), tarsal bones, found in the foot. Its name derives from the human bone's resemblance to a small ...

and the

first First most commonly refers to: * First, the ordinal form of the number 1 First or 1st may also refer to: Acronyms * Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty-Centimeters, an astronomical survey carried out by the Very Large Array * Far Infrared a ...

second The second (symbol: s) is a unit of time derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes, and finally to 60 seconds each (24 × 60 × 60 = 86400). The current and formal definition in the International System of U ...

and

third Third or 3rd may refer to: Numbers * 3rd, the ordinal form of the cardinal number 3 * , a fraction of one third * 1⁄60 of a ''second'', i.e., the third in a series of fractional parts in a sexagesimal number system Places * 3rd Street (di ...

metatarsal bones The metatarsal bones or metatarsus (: metatarsi) are a group of five long bones in the midfoot, located between the tarsal bones (which form the heel and the ankle) and the phalanges ( toes). Lacking individual names, the metatarsal bones are ...

and are medial to the

cuboid bone In the human body, the cuboid bone is one of the seven tarsal bones of the foot. Structure The cuboid bone is the most lateral of the bones in the distal row of the tarsus. It is roughly cubical in shape, and presents a prominence in its infer ...

Structure

There are three cuneiform bones: # The medial cuneiform (also known as first cuneiform) is the largest of the cuneiforms. It is situated at the medial side of the foot, anterior to the

and posterior to the base of the

first metatarsal The first metatarsal bone is the bone in the foot just behind the big toe. The first metatarsal bone is the shortest of the metatarsal bones and by far the thickest and strongest of them. Like the four other metatarsals, it can be divided into th ...

. Lateral to it is the intermediate cuneiform. It articulates with four bones: the navicular, second cuneiform, and

and

metatarsal The metatarsal bones or metatarsus (: metatarsi) are a group of five long bones in the midfoot, located between the tarsal bones (which form the heel and the ankle) and the phalanges ( toes). Lacking individual names, the metatarsal bones are ...

s. The

tibialis anterior The tibialis anterior muscle is a muscle of the anterior compartment of the lower leg. It originates from the upper portion of the tibia; it inserts into the medial cuneiform and first metatarsal bones of the foot. It acts to dorsiflex and invert ...

and

fibularis longus muscle In human anatomy, the fibularis longus (also known as peroneus longus) is a superficial muscle in the lateral compartment of the leg. It acts to tilt the sole of the foot away from the midline of the body ( eversion) and to extend the foot downwa ...

inserts at the medial cuneiform bone. # The intermediate cuneiform (second cuneiform or middle cuneiform) is shaped like a wedge, the thin end pointing downwards. The intermediate cuneiform is situated between the other two cuneiform bones (the medial and lateral cuneiforms), and articulates with the

navicular The navicular bone is a small bone found in the feet of most mammals. Human anatomy The navicular bone in humans is one of the tarsus (skeleton), tarsal bones, found in the foot. Its name derives from the human bone's resemblance to a small ...

posteriorly, the

second metatarsal The second metatarsal bone is a long bone in the foot. It is the longest of the metatarsal bones, being prolonged backward and held firmly into the recess formed by the three cuneiform bones. The second metatarsal forms joints with the second pr ...

anteriorly and with the other cuneiforms on either side. # The lateral cuneiform (also known as third cuneiform or external cuneiform) intermediate in size between the other two cuneiform bones, is also wedge-shaped, the base being uppermost. It occupies the center of the front row of the

tarsal bones In the human body, the tarsus (: tarsi) is a cluster of seven articulating bones in each foot situated between the lower end of the tibia and the fibula of the lower leg and the metatarsus. It is made up of the midfoot (cuboid, medial, intermedi ...

, between the intermediate cuneiform medially, the

cuboid In geometry, a cuboid is a hexahedron with quadrilateral faces, meaning it is a polyhedron with six Face (geometry), faces; it has eight Vertex (geometry), vertices and twelve Edge (geometry), edges. A ''rectangular cuboid'' (sometimes also calle ...

laterally, the

posteriorly and the

in front. The

tibialis posterior The tibialis posterior muscle is the most central of all the leg muscles, and is located in the deep posterior compartment of the leg. It is the key stabilizing muscle of the lower leg. Posterior tibial tendonitis Posterior tibial tendonitis i ...

inserts at the lateral cuneiform, while the

flexor hallucis brevis Flexor hallucis brevis muscle is a muscle of the foot that flexes the big toe. Structure Flexor hallucis brevis muscle arises, by a pointed tendinous process, from the medial part of the under surface of the cuboid bone, from the contiguous por ...

originates from it.

Muscle attachments

Injuries

Lisfranc fracture A Lisfranc injury, also known as Lisfranc fracture, is an injury of the foot in which one or more of the metatarsal bones are displaced from the tarsus. The injury is named after Jacques Lisfranc de St. Martin, a French surgeon and gynecolog ...

– in which one or all of the

s are displaced from the tarsus *Cuneiform fracture - Due to the ligamentous support of the midfoot, isolated cuneiform fractures are rare

Additional images

Gray268.png, Bones of the right foot. Dorsal surface. Image:Gray269.png, Bones of the right foot. Plantar Surface. Image:Gray290.png, Skeleton of foot. Medial aspect. Image:Gray291.png, Skeleton of foot. Lateral aspect. Image:Gray360.png, Oblique section of left intertarsal and tarsometatarsal articulations, showing the synovial cavities. Image:Ospied-en.svg, Bones of foot File:Slide29DEN.JPG, Cuneiform. Superior view. File:Slide31DEN.JPG, Cuneiform. Superior view.

Other animals

References