Base of the skull. Upper surface.
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The foramen lacerum (Latin for lacerated piercing) is a triangular hole in the base of the skull located at the base of the medial pterygoid plate.
Transit through the foramen lacerum
Several anatomy texts incorrectly state that the internal carotid artery passes through the foramen lacerum. However, in vivo the foramen is actually occluded by cartilage, preventing the artery from passing through. Rather, the internal carotid artery enters the base of the skull through the carotid canal, and travels superiorly to the cartilage occluding the foramen lacerum.
Furthermore, one of the terminal branches of the ascending pharyngeal artery (itself a branch of the external carotid artery) passes through the foramen lacerum. This is one of three possible "meningeal branches" of this vessel, the ascending pharyngeal artery.
