Ear, Human, Auditory ossicles

Crossing the middle-ear cavity is the short ossicular chain formed by three tiny bones that link the tympanic membrane with the oval window and inner ear (Figure 2). From the outside inward they are the malleus (hammer), the incus (anvil), and the stapes (stirrup). The malleus more closely resembles a club than a hammer, and the incus looks more like a premolar tooth with uneven