Behind either condyle of the lateral parts of occipital bone is a depression, the condyloid fossa (or condylar fossa), which receives the posterior margin of the superior facet of the atlas when the head is bent backward; the floor of this fossa is sometimes perforated by the condyloid canal, through which an emissary vein passes from the transverse sinus.

• Human skull seen from below. Position of condyloid fossa shown in red.
• Skull and cervical vertebra. Position of condyloid fossa shown in red.
• X-ray of cervical spine (neck) in flexion and extension (bending backwards)

• Occipital condyle
• Atlas

This article incorporates text in the public domain from page 131 of the 20th edition of Gray's Anatomy (1918)

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