Arteries of the head: External carotid artery (English)

After bifurcating from the common carotid artery, the external carotid artery courses superiorly along the neck, giving branches to supply the muscles, viscera and skin of the head, neck and face. There are eight major branches emerging directly from the external carotid artery: the superior thyroid, ascending pharyngeal, lingual, facial, occipital and posterior auricular arteries, as well as two terminal branches, the maxillary and superficial temporal arteries. The superior image shows the three parts of the maxillary artery and its branches, which supply many structures of the face, ear, skull, meninges, oral cavity and oropharynx.