Studies in the Medicine of Ancient India, Part I: Osteology, or the Bones of the Human Body c7.s2.t3.22

c7.s2.t3.22

There are thirteen ribs (*pārśvaka*) on either side, which aggregate to twenty-six. The tubercles, (*arbuda*), being the bones which connect the ribs with the breast (*vakṣas*), are ten on either side, which make twenty. The sockets (*sthālaka*), being the bones which connect them with the back (*pṛṣṭha*), are thirteen on either side, which make twenty-six. In this way, the ribs together with their tubercles and sockets amount to seventy-two (i.e. 26 + 20 + 26 = 72). (Original Text in § 85.)