Bone · Foot

Tarsal bones

Ossa tarsi

The tarsals are the seven bones of the back and middle of the foot: the talus, the calcaneus, the navicular, the cuboid and three cuneiforms. Individually they barely move; together they form an arched, mobile block that does two opposite jobs in one step — loosening to spread out over whatever it lands on, then locking into a rigid lever to push off from.