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Answer to Question 3: Regarding the spine of the sphenoid, which is false? a. It lies medial to the mandibular condyle. b. It lies below the floor of the middle cranial fossa. c. It is the posterior angle formed at the junction of the medial and lateral edges of the greater wing of the sphenoid in the floor of the middle cranial fossa. d. It lies posterior to the foramen spinosum. e. It has a vertical orientation.

The sphenoid spine is a vertical bony projection posterior to the foramen spinosum (from which the foramen derives its name). It is connected to the posterior angle at the junction of the medial and lateral edges of the greater wing of the sphenoid in the floor of the middle cranial fossa. In these successive images from inferior to superior, note the position of the sphenoid spine below the portion of the greater wing of the sphenoid that forms the floor of the middle cranial fossa. It lies anterior to the styloid process and medial to the mandibular condyle.