Tag: dianagabldon

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Fun Fact: Scapula

Outlander episode 312, The Bakra

Anatomy def: Scapulae are paired, flat triangular bones, each forming the back part of the human shoulder – commonly known as the shoulder blades.

Outlander def: Twin blades, shadowed and drenched with goats’ blood, reveal themselves to a terrified young Ian. Puir lad!

Learn about scapulae in Anatomy Lesson #2, When Claire Meets Jamie or How to Fall in Love While Reducing a Dislocated Shoulder Joint! 

Scapulae are extremely important bones because together with each upper arm bone (humerus) they form the shoulder joints. Large, flat and triangular in shape, each scapula also creates the point of the shoulder (acromion) and provide important attachments for muscles such as trapezius, deltoid, and biceps brachii. Fractures of the scapula commonly take 6-8 weeks to heal and some types may require surgery to stabilize. Ergo, take good care of your scapulae!

Read about Jamie’s scapulae in Voyager book. Ahhhh….well, this passage contains a wee bit more anatomical detail than just shoulder blades! <G>

He made a small grunting sound of content as I moved his head into my lap and began to stroke it, rubbing his temples, smoothing back the thick wavy mass of his hair. The back of his neck was damp; I lifted the hair away and blew softly on it, seeing the smooth fair skin prickle into gooseflesh at the nape of his neck.

“Oh, that feels good,” he murmured. Despite my resolve not to touch him beyond the demands of caretaking until everything between us was resolved, I found my hands molding themselves to the clean, bold lines of his neck and shoulders, seeking the hard knobs of his vertebrae and the broad, flat planes of his shoulder blades.

See Geillis’ scapulae emerge from a film of goats’ blood in Outlander episode 312, The Bakra. What a vision!!!

The deeply grateful,

Outlander Anatomist

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Photo Credit: Sony/Starz

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Fun Fact: mentalis

image of Marsali, Fergus and Jamie from Outlander TV show.

Starz episode 309, The doldrums

Anatomy def: Paired mentalis muscles arise from mandible and insert into skin of chin. These elevate and wrinkle chin skin and, when fully contracted, protrude the lower lip.

Outlander def:  The “you-canna-tell-me-and-Fergus-what-to-do” muscles. Marsali is spectacular at wrinkling chin-skin as she glares at her step-father aboard the rocking Artemis. When an immovable object meets an unstoppable force – dinna mess with #defiantmarsali!

Learn about mentalis muscles in Antomy Lesson #26, Jamie’s Chin – Manly Mentus.

Because mentalis muscles wrinkle chin skin and protrude lower lip, these are  sometimes termed the “pouting muscles.” Particularly useful to express doubt or displeasure! (See above: Marsali)  <G> 

Read about chins in Voyager book: pouty, pugnacious, stubbled, stubborn, thoughtful, pointed, expressive… Herself covers all the chin-bits because chins are very expressive facial structures. Aye? A great quote about Marsali’s chin. Pssst…… please lass, dinna address your step-mum this way! We love our Claire and you will, too. Give her a chance!

I was writing in our shared cabin, making surgical notes on a minor amputation—two smashed toes on one of the foredeck hands. I had just completed a drawing of the surgical site, when a shadow darkened the doorway of the cabin, and I looked up to see Marsali standing there, chin thrust out pugnaciously.

“I need to know something,” she said firmly. “I dinna like ye, and I reckon ye ken that, but Da says you’re a wisewoman, and I think you’re maybe an honest woman, even if ye are a whore, so you’ll maybe tell me.”

See Marsali’s pugnacious chin in Starz episode 309, The Doldrums, as she confronts Jamie (and later in the same episode, she confronts Claire). Ruined reputation or no, she will have her Frenchy-Fergus!

The deeply grateful,

Outlander Anatomist

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Photo Credit: Sony/Starz