The Skeletal System

human skeleton
The human skeleton has 206 bones. (Image credit: <a href="http://www.shutterstock.com/gallery-368962p1.html">Philipp Nicolai</a> | <a href=" http://www.shutterstock.com/">Shutterstock</a>)

If you are an arthropod, you’ve come to the wrong place. About 98 percent of all animals are invertebrates, meaning they have no backbone or internal skeletal system, and humans happen to be in the minority. Humans: Read on to learn all about your 206 bones (270 if you’re a newborn), plus the ligaments, tendons, and cartilage that connects them.

Latest about The Skeletal System

Excavations in 2016 at the Antikythera shipwreck found a nearly intact skull, including the cranial parietal bones.

Ancient Skeleton Found on Famed Antikythera Shipwreck

By Mindy Weisberger last updated

A well-preserved 2,000-year-old skeleton could provide the first DNA evidence recovered from an ancient shipwreck.

An illustration of the human body

The Human Body: Anatomy, facts & functions

By Rachael Rettner, Scott Dutfield published

Reference Many complex processes go on inside the human body every day.

Reference
A 3D illustration of the human skeletal system.

The Human Skeletal System

By Kim Ann Zimmermann published

Humans wouldn't get very far without bones — literally.

Pictish man

This May Be the Face of a Pictish Chieftain Who Was Brutally Murdered 1,400 Years Ago

By Laura Geggel published

A Pictish man with a rugged face who was brutally murdered 1,400 years ago may have been royalty, new research finds.

null

Was This Famous Revolutionary War Hero Intersex?

By Mindy Weisberger published

Remains in General Pulaski's tomb tell an unexpected and intriguing tale.

umbrella slug

What Is the Toothiest Animal on Earth?

By Emma Bryce published

How many teeth can one mouth hold? You may be surprised.

This medieval man's skeleton, bearing marks of stab wounds, was found facedown in a shallow pit in Sicily.

Why an Outlaw Was Stabbed to Death and Then Buried Face-Down in Medieval Sicily

By Yasemin Saplakoglu published

The killing was "effective and rapid" by someone who knows human anatomy "very well."

headland man in thigh high boots

Photos: 500-Year-Old Body of Man with Thigh-High Boots

By Megan Gannon published

Archaeologists discovered the man's body in London's sewer system.

null

Pompeii Man Had a Really, Really Bad Day 2,000 Years Ago

By Yasemin Saplakoglu published

A decapitated skeleton is the latest find among the ruins of Pompeii

null

Archaeologists Just Discovered the Mangled Remains of a Slaughtered Barbarian Tribe in Denmark

By Brandon Specktor published

2,000 years ago, a ragtag group of Germanic tribesmen was slaughtered in battle. How they were buried has archaeologists turning their heads.

123456789Archives