This artery (A. temporalis superficialis) is much the smaller of the two
terminal branches of the external carotid. It passes upward behind the
posterior border of the ramus of the mandible under cover of the parotid
gland, and divides below the level of the condyle into the anterior
auricular and transverse facial arteries. It is crossed superficially by
the facial nerve.
The =anterior auricular artery= (A. auricularis anterior) passes upward
behind the temporo-mandibular articulation under cover of the parotid
gland, crosses the zygomatic arch, and reaches the temporalis muscle. It
is crossed deeply at its origin by the superficial temporal nerve and is
accompanied by a satellite vein and the auriculo-palpebral branch of the
facial nerve. It is distributed to the skin and the temporal and
anterior auricular muscles, and sends a branch through the conchal
cartilage to the skin which lines it. Collateral twigs are detached to
the parotid gland, and an anterior branch anastomoses with the
supraorbital artery. A branch sometimes passes into the parieto-temporal
canal and anastomoses with the posterior meningeal (mastoid) artery.
The =transverse facial artery= (A. transversa faciei) is larger than the
preceding. It turns around the neck below the condyle of the mandible
and emerges from beneath the parotid gland (Fig. 435). It then passes
forward a short distance on the masseter about half an inch below the
zygomatic arch and plunges into the muscle, in which it commonly divides
into two chief branches. It is accompanied by a vein and a branch of the
superficial temporal nerve. It supplies the masseter and the skin of
this region, and anastomoses with the external maxillary and posterior
deep temporal arteries.
[Illustration: