Fun Fact: patella

These canna be small potatoes! Nope, it’s the patella!

ep-208-patella

Patella pa·tel·la,

sing. n patella; pl. n patellae

From Latin patina meaning shallow dish

First use: late 16th century

Anatomy def: The kneecap or kneepan; a shallow, conical-shaped bone which articulates with the femur and covers the knee joint.

Outlander def: Knee porn! “nuf said!

Learn about patella and knee joint by reading Anatomy Lesson #7, “Jamie’s Thighs or Ode to Joy!”

Read about the knees in Dragonfly in AmberQuoting one of many great examples:

Jamie laced his hands together, elbows braced on his knees, and rested his chin on his linked knuckles. “This wilna be like France,” he said quietly. “Fighting there, ye risk no more than your life in battle. Here …” He hesitated, then went on. “Jenny, this is treason. If it goes wrong, those that follow the Stuarts are like to end on a scaffold.

Herself even specifies the knee cap. Again, from Dragonfly in AmberClaire describes this sad scene:

”Mother Hildegarde wrapped her in a length of white satin,” I said, looking down at my fists, clenched in my lap. “Her eyes were closed. She hadn’t any lashes yet, but her eyes were slanted. I said they were like yours, but they said all babies’ eyes are like that.” Ten fingers, and ten toes. No nails, but the gleam of tiny joints, kneecaps and fingerbones like opals, like the jeweled bones of the earth itself. Remember man, that thou art dust.…

See a great patella on a handsome fella in Starz episode 208, The Fox’s Lair. Claire canna keep her hands off Jamie’s knee <G>!

A deeply grateful,

Outlander Anatomist

Fun Fact – Gastrocnemius

Gastrocnemius3

Gastrocnemius gas·troc·ne·mi·us ˌɡastrō(k)ˈnēmēəs/, noun: gastrocnemius; plural noun: gastrocnemii

Anatomy def: the chief muscle of the calf of the leg, it flexes (bends) the knee and ankle. Two heads arise from the femur and attach to the heel bone (calcaneus) by the single Achilles tendon. From Greek gastēr, gastr- ‘stomach’ + knēmē ‘leg. meaning stomach of the leg due to the bulging shape of the calf.

Learn about the gastrocnemius in Anatomy Lesson #27, “Colum’s Legs and Other Things Too.”

See Jamie’s gastrocnemius muscles as he crosses a plank bridge at the Lallybroch millstream, Starz episode 112, Lallybroch.

Read about Jamie’s legs in Outlander book:

I sat up, admiring the long legs, with the smooth line of muscling that indented the thigh from hip to knee, and another that ran from knee to long, elegant foot. The bottoms of his feet were smooth and pink, slightly callused from going barefoot.

A deeply grateful,

Outlander Anatomist