Cribriform plate

The cribriform plate (Lamina cribrosa) of the ethmoid bone is often described as an uneven and transverse formation (hence the synonymy with the 'horizontal plate') on which is implanted on the median plane the perpendicular plate, that subdivides it into two lateral parts. It seems more logical to us to consider that there are two cribriform plates, located from either side of the perpendicular plate at the basis of the crista galli. It is to the countless perforations of these plates that the ethmoid bone got its name (sieve-shaped bone).