The main axis of the skeleton is called the axial skeleton. It forms the vertical, central axis of the body and includes the bones of the head, neck, chest, and back. Specifically, it consists of the skull, vertebral column, and thoracic cage (ribs and sternum). The axial skeleton protects vital organs such as the brain, spinal cord, heart, and lungs and serves as an attachment site for muscles that move the head, neck, and trunk, as well as muscles involved in limb movement. The axial skeleton has 80 bones in total and includes the skull, the ossicles of the middle ear, the hyoid bone in the throat, the vertebral column (with vertebrae, sacrum, and coccyx), and the thoracic cage (ribs and sternum).
