Human Vertebrae Comparison

3D ModelNoAI

Scene depicting the differences among the 3 types of vertebrae in humans, in anterior starting position. Recognizing the different vertebrae in forensic anthropology and bioarchaeology helps with determining the completeness of an individual skeleton and can also help with estimating the minimum number of individuals (MNI) in a skeletal assemblage.

Note the presence of transverse foramina in the cervical and bifid spinous process. In profile, thoracic resemble a giraffe (say “thoracic giraffe”), and lumbar resemble a moose (think “lumbering moose”). Thoracic also have rib facets on the transverse processes and lateral surfaces of the body, but those are difficult to see on these CT-derived models.

Models include a 6th cervical (added 9/9/2023), 8th thoracic, and 2nd lumbar from the CT scan of an 18yo male (MEDLYMPH006) from the CT Lymph Nodes Collection of the Cancer Imaging Archive (TCIA).