1649RiolanJ

Fragments from the book Riolan J. Opera anatomica (1649). The author discusses the areas of attachment of ligamentum capitis femoris (LCF), physical properties and mentions several rare synonyms (neruus, priuatum, neurocartilagineum). In particular, the author chooses the unusual term «neurocartilagineum, which is mentioned by 1880HyrtlJ and 1803SchregerCHT. It should be noted that the translation «neurocartilaginous» would be incorrect, since Jean Riolan implies «sinew» rather than «nerve». In quoting Hippocrates, the author is clearly mistaken, since the LCF is described in the treatise on «Mochlicus» (Instruments of Reductions). In some cases, we have added links to quotations about LCF available on our resource, as well as to publications posted on the Internet.

Quote p. 514.

[Lat]

In librum Galeni De ossibus ad tyrones commentaries.

Commentarius in caput XX. De crure.

Caput XXVII.

In vnoquoque quaedam obseruanda veniunt. Ac primum in superiore notari debet Caput rotundum coxendici articulatum, quod Hippocrati, lib. de Ossibuum natura, epiphiysis est, ex qua nascitur Neruus, qui Femur acetabulo colligat & adstringit. Huic substrata pars gracilior Ceruix dicitur, quae acetabulo foris extrorsum abscedit, vt musculis inferna parte collocandis, itemque magnis venis, arteriis, neruis & glandulis vasorum diuifionibus praepositis locum relioqueret, in quit Gelenus, lib. 3. de vsu partium.

Quote p. 638.

[Lat]

Animadversiones in opus anatomicum Andreae Laurentij.

Ligamenta Femoris et Tibia.

Cap. II. lib.3. Non rect describit ligamentum, quod appellat priuatum, a cotyles fundo in medium femoris caput productum. Non enim enascitur a fundo cotyles, sed ab illo hiatu aspero ad latus internum cotyles exsculpto, istudque ligamentum medium est inter neruum & cartilaginem, vt neurocartilagineum dici debeat, atque etiam cruentum est, quale spectur illud ligamentum interiectum tibiae & femori, quod est vnicum, latum, non triplex, vt voluit Laurentius.

Translation

[Eng]

Quote p. 514.

On Galen's book «On Bones for Beginners». Comments.

COMMENTARY TO CHAPTER XX. About the shin.

Chapter XXVII.

Each of them has something to observe. First, in the upper part we should note the round head articulated with the hip joint, which Hippocrates in On the Nature of Bones calls the epiphysis, from which emerges the nerve/sinew [Neruus], which connects and strengthens the femur in the acetabulum. Below this is a narrower part called the neck, which extends outward from the acetabulum to leave room for the muscles located in the lower part, as well as for the large veins, arteries, nerves and glands, as well as the branching of the vessels, as Galen says in the book 3 «De vsu partium».

Quote p. 638.

Notes to the anatomical work of Andrea Laurentius.

Ligaments of the thigh and lower leg.

Chapter II, Book 3. He incorrectly describes the ligament, which he calls private [priuatum], emerging from the floor of the acetabulum and attaching to the middle of the femoral head. It does not arise from the floor of the acetabulum, but from this rough hole cut on the inside of the acetabulum, and this ligament is intermediate between the nerve/sinew [neruum], and cartilage [cartilaginem], so it should be called neurocartilaginous/sinewcartilaginous [neurocartilagineum], it also contains blood vessels, like that ligament that connects the tibia and thigh, which is single, broad, and not triple, as Laurentius asserted.

External links

Riolan J. Opera anatomica vetera, recognita, & auctiora, quamplura noua, quorum seriem dabit sequens pagina. Lutetiae Parisiorum: sumptibus Gaspari Meturas viâ Iacobaea, sub signo SS. Trinitatis, prope Maturinenses, MDCXLIX [1649]. [archive.org]

Authors & Affiliations

Jean Riolan the Younger (1580-1657) was French physician, botanist and anatomist, professor of Collège Royal. [wikipedia.org]

Jean Riolan (1626)
Line engraving by M. Lasne after D. Dumontier,
original in the wellcomecollection.org
(CC0 – Public Domain, no changes)

Keywords

ligamentum capitis femoris, ligamentum teres, ligament of head of femur, anatomy, attachment, synonym, properties

NB! Fair practice / use: copied for the purposes of criticism, review, comment, research and private study in accordance with Copyright Laws of the US: 17 U.S.C. §107; Copyright Law of the EU: Dir. 2001/29/EC, art.5/3a,d; Copyright Law of the RU: ГК РФ ст.1274/1.1-2,7

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SCIENTIFIC SYNONYMS

Comments

1902RilkeRM

Works of art that mention ligamentum capitis femoris (LCF) are extremely rare. One such work is the poem «Der Schauende» ( He Who Visions, The Seer, The Man Watching, The Beholder) b y Rainer Rilke. Below is the original text in German. Der Schauende 1. Ich sehe den Bäumen die Stürme an, die aus laugewordenen Tagen an meine ängstlichen Fenster schlagen, und höre die Fernen Dinge sagen, die ich nicht ohne Freund ertragen, nicht ohne Schwester lieben kann. 2. Da geht der Sturm, ein Umgestalter, geht durch den Wald und durch die Zeit, und alles ist wie ohne Alter: die Landschaft, wie ein Vers im Psalter, ist Ernst und Wucht und Ewigkeit. 3. Wie ist das klein, womit wir ringen, was mit uns ringt, wie ist das groß; ließen wir, ähnlicher den Dingen, uns so vom großen Sturm bezwingen, - wir würden weit und namenlos. 4. Was wir besiegen, ist das Kleine, und der Erfolg selbst macht uns klein. Das Ewige und Ungemeine will nicht von uns gebogen sein. Das ist der Enge...

1730CheseldenW

Fragments from the book Cheselden W. The Anatomy of the Human Body (1730). The author draws attention to the role of ligamentum capitis femoris (LCF) in counteracting hip dislocation and maintaining the femoral head in the joint. The work notes that the LCF is “powerful” and “short” - “about two inches” i.e. approximately 5 cm! This error will be corrected in a subsequent treatise ( 1733CheseldenW ) . Quote pp. 43 - 44 Chap. VII. Of the Ligaments At the upper part of the articulation of the Os Femoris and Os Innominatum, is a strong ligament of great consequence; it contributing very much to preserve that joint from being luxated by the weight of the body. And from the lower edge of the Acetabulum of the Os Innominatum, runs a ligament to the middle of the head of the Os Femoris, about two inches long (which the Motion in this joint requires) called Teres, or Rotundum, whose use is to prevent the Os Femoris from being luxated upwards, but down wards it will le...

LCF in 2026 (May)

LCF in 2026 (May ) (Quotes from articles and books published in May 2026 mentioning the ligamentum capitis femoris) Kim, P. S., Kang, C., Lee, J. K., & Hwang, J. M. (2026). Hip arthroscopy to treat symptomatic paralabral cysts: a retrospective analysis of clinical outcomes. Arthroscopy and Orthopedic Sports Medicine , 13 (1), 27-34. [i] e-aosm.org Ko, H. Y. (2026). Vascular Anatomy of the Extremities and Lungs. In Practical Functional Anatomy for Spinal Cord Injury Rehabilitation: A Guide for Physiatrists and Rehabilitation Specialists (pp. 191-223). Singapore: Springer Nature Singapore. [ii] link.springer.com Aiba, H., Yamaguchi, M., Kimura, H., & Murakami, H. (2026). Advances in limb-salvage surgery and reconstruction for pediatric bone and soft tissue tumors. Frontiers in Pediatrics , 14 , 1817788. [iii] pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov Bajwa, A., Villar, R., ...

1851HyrtlJ

The author expresses a classic view on the functions of the ligamentum capitis femoris (LCF): a conductor of blood vessels and a limiter of adduction of the femur. J. Hyrtl believed that it was impossible to completely dislocate the hip without tearing the LCF. Hyrtl J. Lehrbuch der Anatomie des Menschen, mit Rücksicht auf physiologische Begründung und praktische Anwendung. Wien: W. Braumüller, 1851. [fragment] Quote p. 265 In der Höhle des Gelenks liegt das runde Band des Schenkelkopfes (Lig. teres), welches an der Incisura acetabuli entspringt, und bei richtiger Neigung des Beckens, senkrecht zur Grube des Schenkelkopfes aufsteigt. Es beschränkt dieses Band die Zuziehung des Schenkels, und schreibt zugleich den durch die Incisura acetabuli eindringenden Blutgefässen den Weg vor, den sie zum Oberschenkelkopfe zu nehmen haben. Da das Band, wenn es in die Höhle des Gelenkes vorragen würde, durch Reibung viel zu leiden hätte, so...

16с.Archangel_Michael

Icon «Michael the Archangel (in deeds)», stigma «The struggle of Jacob with the angel» (16th cent.). Depicting the circumstances and mechanism of the ligamentum capitis femoris (LCF) injury based on the description in the Book of Genesis: 25 And Ja cob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day. 26 And when he saw that he could not pre vail against him, he struck against the hollow of his thigh ; and the hollow of Jacob's thigh was put out of joint, as he was wrestling with him. … 33 Therefore do the children of Israel not eat the sinew which shrank, which is upon the hollow of the thigh, unto this day; because he struck against the hollow of Jacob's thigh on the sinew that shrank. ( 1922LeeserI , Genesis (Bereshit) 32:25-26,33) More about the plot in our work: Ninth month, eleventh day ( 2024АрхиповСВ. Девятый месяц, одиннадцатый день ). Unknown author – Icon «Michael the Archangel (in deeds)»...

1626BartholinC

Fragment from the book Bartholin C. Anatomicae Institutiones Corporis Humani (1626). The author describes the anatomy, topography, geometric and mechanical properties of the ligamentum capitis femoris (LCF). The term «terete» (rounded) is used to indicate its geometry. The term «cartilagine» (cartilaginous) is used to describe the hardness of the LCF, and the analogy of «nervus esset cartilaginosus» (like a cartilaginous sinew) is given. Similar terminological elements are present in the works of Galen of Pergamon and Theophilus Protospatharius ( 2020ArkhipovSV_ProlyginaIV ). See the previous edition at the link: 1611BartholinC Quote p. 409 [Lat] Cap. XXI. DE OSSIBUS TOTIUS PEDIS. … I. Est caput maximum & rotundum, ex appendice factum, quod in coxendicis acetabulum inseritur, & duplici ligamento cum coxendice nectitur: uno communi, lato, membraneo, sed satis crasso, orbiculatum articulum ambiente; altero terete, quasi cartilagine (ac si nervus esset cart...

1905BardeenCR

An excerpt from the article by Bardeen CR. Studies of the development of the human skeleton (1905). The author briefly discusses the emergence of the ligamentum capitis femoris (LCF). Quote p. 287 The hip-joint is represented at first by a dense mass of scleroblastema, Fig. 55. The development of the acetabulum by ingrowth and fusion of processes from the iliac, ischial and pubic cartilages has already been described. The cartilagenous joint-cavity is at first quite shallow, Fig. 56. But extension of cartilage into the blastemal tissue which passes from the pelvis over the head of the femur serves greatly to deepen it on all sides except in the region of the cotyloid notch. The joint-cavity is at first completely filled with a dense blastemat tissue, Fig. 56. While the embryo is growing from 20 to 30 mm. in length cavity formation begins in the tissue lying between the cartilagenous floor of the acetabulum and the head of the femur. The first stage in the process is marked by a c...

1720RuyschF

The author draws attention to the well-developed blood supply of the acetabular fossa, as well as the ligamentum capitis femoris (LCF). In the work, it is referred to as the «ligamentum nerveo-cartilagineum», which literally means the tough cartilaginous ligament and implies its strength. With the difficulty of accessing the acetabular fossa, and therefore the LCF, Frederik Ruysch associates the inefficiency of treating hip joint pain. The writer presumably implies osteoarthritis. In our opinion, its development is initiated by the pathology of the LCF ( 2012АрхиповСВ ). The discussed work includes a black and white drawing of the LCF of a child, made by the illustrator Jan Wandelaar. In color, the same preparation, but from a different angle, was depicted by the artist Jan l'Admiral in a separate publication ( 1738LadmiralJ ). Ruysch F. Adversarium anatomico-medico-chirurgicorum decas secunda. In quâ varia notatu digna recensentur. Cum figuris aeneis. Amsterdami: a...

Human Children. Retelling of Chapter 14

Short retelling of chapter 14 of the essay: Arkhipov S.V. Human Children: The Origins of Biblical Legends from a Physician's Perspective. Joensuu: Author's Edition, 2025. [In Russian] Chapter 14. ESAU AND JACOB At 40, Isaac marries Rebekah, his cousin’s daughter. Their marriage is long childless until Rebekah conceives twins, detected prenatally, possibly by her large belly or palpation. Genesis states that at 60, Isaac fathers the twins, born naturally after 20 years of marriage. The first, Esau, emerges “red, all hairy like a cloak,” followed by Jacob, unremarkable but grasping Esau’s heel. Over time, their differences deepen: Esau, a skilled hunter, roams fields; Jacob, gentle, stays in tents. Famine forces the family from “Beer-Lahai-Roi” in the Negev to “Gerar’s Philistine king,” then to “Gerar’s valley,” and finally to Beersheba. At 40, Jacob, urged by Rebekah, deceives blind Isaac to steal Esau’s inheritance, sparking enmity. Rebekah advises Jacob to flee to rela...

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