The head of the mandible is anterior to the external ear and behind and inferior to the posterior end of the zygomatic arch. It is best found by opening and closing the jaw and palpating the head of the mandible as it moves forward onto the articular tubercle and then back into the mandibular fossa, respectively.
The zygomatic arch extends forward from the region of the temporomandibular joint to the zygomatic bone, which forms a bony prominence lateral to the inferior margin of the anterior opening of the orbit.