Bony landmark · Head

Nuchal line

Linea nuchalis

The nuchal lines are low ridges running sideways across the back of the skull from the central bump out towards each ear. They mark the border where the neck ends and the scalp begins, and almost everything that holds the head up finishes here: the trapezius and sternocleidomastoid along the superior line, the splenius capitis just below and to the side, and the small suboccipital muscles onto the inferior line. That is why this narrow strip at the base of the skull is such a familiar tender band.