Articulated skeleton keychain with turning head

Why babies have more bones

In a baby, part of the skeleton is still cartilage or consists of pieces that later grow together. A well-known example is the skull: in a newborn there are still soft spots between the skull bones, the fontanelles. They close in the first years.

Bones in the lower back and pelvis also grow together. The sacrum at the bottom of the spine is a single piece in adults, but starts out as several separate vertebrae. By adulthood, that leaves the familiar number of 206.

Where are most of the bones?

A striking number of bones are in your hands and feet. Together they account for more than half of the total. That explains why your fingers and toes can move so precisely.

• Each hand has 27 bones, including the wrist.
• Each foot has 26 bones.
• The smallest bone, the stirrup, is in your middle ear.
• The longest bone is the thigh bone.

The exact number can differ slightly from person to person, for example because of an extra rib or a small extra bone in the foot. 206 is the number found in most textbooks.

And the skeleton keychain?

Our skeleton keychain naturally has far fewer than 206 bones. It is a simplified, funny skeleton with a big skull, a rib cage and hinged arms and legs. The turning head and the separate limbs let you put it in all kinds of poses.

Skeletons have long been part of Halloween, because the festival revolves around the dead and the boundary between life and death. A small, cheerful skeleton makes that theme light-hearted. Let it wave from your monitor or put it in the splits on the windowsill. Key ring included.

This is decoration, not a toy; not suitable for children under 3 (small parts). We print to order and deliver within 30 days at most. If you need it for 31 October, put that in the note field; we will confirm by email.