Bone · Neck
Axis
Axis
In Review
The axis is the second vertebra of the neck, and it carries a vertical peg — the dens, or odontoid process — that stands up into the ring of the atlas above. The atlas and the head rotate around that peg, and roughly half of all neck rotation happens at this single joint. Strong ligaments hold the peg against the front of the ring.
Also known as
- C2
- second cervical vertebra
- epistropheus