_BL_, Bladder; _B_, body; _C_, _C′_, cornua of uterus; _O_, _O′_,
ovaries; _L. K._, left kidney. The concealed part of the colon is
indicated by dotted lines. (From photograph of formalin-hardened
subject.)
]
The =large intestine= is two to two and a half feet (ca. 60 to 75 cm.)
long. Its caliber is about the same as that of the small intestine, and
it has neither longitudinal bands nor sacculations.
The =cæcum= is about three or four inches (ca. 8 to 10 cm.) long, and is
twisted in a spiral fashion. The twist is maintained by the peritoneum,
which attaches it to the ileum. It is situated usually against the
middle of the upper part of the right flank, below the duodenum and the
right branch of the pancreas.[118]
The =colon= is attached to the sublumbar region by a mesentery, the
mesocolon. It presents three parts, which correspond to the ascending,
transverse, and descending colon of man. The first or right part (Colon
ascendens) is very short. It begins at the junction of the ileum and
cæcum, and passes forward along the inner surface of the duodenum and
the right branch of the pancreas till it reaches the pyloric part of the
stomach; here it turns inward and crosses the median plane, forming the
transverse part (Colon transversum). The third or left part (Colon
descendens) passes backward in the sublumbar region along the inner
border or ventral surface of the left kidney; then inclines toward the
median plane and joins the rectum.[119] The caliber of the colon is
about the same throughout. It has no bands nor sacculations.
[Illustration: