anatomy Anatomy () is the branch of biology concerned with the study of the structure of organisms and their parts. Anatomy is a branch of natural science that deals with the structural organization of living things. It is an old science, having i ...

, the middle temporal artery is a major

artery An artery (plural arteries) () is a blood vessel in humans and most animals that takes blood away from the heart to one or more parts of the body (tissues, lungs, brain etc.). Most arteries carry oxygenated blood; the two exceptions are the pu ...

which arises immediately above the

zygomatic arch In anatomy, the zygomatic arch, or cheek bone, is a part of the skull formed by the zygomatic process of the temporal bone (a bone extending forward from the side of the skull, over the opening of the ear) and the temporal process of the zygo ...

, and, perforating the

temporal fascia The temporal fascia covers the temporalis muscle. It is a strong, fibrous investment, covered, laterally, by the auricularis anterior and superior, by the galea aponeurotica, and by part of the orbicularis oculi. The superficial temporal vesse ...

, gives branches to the temporalis, anastomosing with the deep temporal branches of the internal maxillary. It occasionally gives off a zygomatico-orbital branch, which runs along the upper border of the zygomatic arch, between the two layers of the temporal fascia, to the lateral angle of the

orbit In celestial mechanics, an orbit is the curved trajectory of an object such as the trajectory of a planet around a star, or of a natural satellite around a planet, or of an artificial satellite around an object or position in space such as ...

(the eye socket).

Additional images

File:Gray137.png, Left temporal bone. Outer surface.

References

Arteries of the head and neck {{circulatory-stub