This chapter now shows only the mandible as it has developed up to the seventh week. The cartilaginous framework is formed by Meckel’s cartilage, which here has a very distinct V-shape (see Fig. 8.3). The medial bend at its right end may be an artifact: The embryo may have been lying on its right side during fixation, and the weight of the head may have led to this atypical deformation. However, the two single ends are obviously intact. Here the caudal bend of the cartilaginous bar is recognizable as the later malleus. In the area of the mental symphysis, the two halves are in contact with each other. And it is typical for Meckel’s cartilage that it is thicker at its anterior end than along its course. Here, two individual processes are visible, and they project caudally to different extents (Fig. 8.1).