(1.03)

Let's take a brief look at the the occipital and temporal bones from the inside. Here's the squamous part of the occipital bone, here’s the basilar part, here’s the foramen magnum. Here's the squamous part of the temporal bone, here's the petrous part, which contains the structures of the inner and middle ear.

Here’s the jugular foramen on the inside. This big groove behind it is for the sigmoid sinus , the main venous drainage channel for the brain. Below and medial to the jugular foramen is the hypoglossal canal. Above the jugular foramen is the internal auditory meatus for the vestibulocochlear, and facial nerves. The carotid canal ends here at the foramen lacerum, as we’ll see in the next section.