The cuneus is a wedge of cortex on the inner (medial) face of the occipital lobe, at the back of each hemisphere. The parieto-occipital sulcus bounds it in front and the calcarine sulcus below, with the lingual gyrus on the other side of that groove. [1][2]
The 3D brain needs JavaScript. The text below still says where the cuneus is and what it does.
Opens cut down the midline and seen from the left, so you look at the inner face of the right hemisphere: the cuneus is the upper wedge of the lit occipital lobe, between the parieto-occipital sulcus in front and the calcarine sulcus below. Drag to turn, pinch or scroll to zoom, tap any part to name it; .
Lit: the whole occipital lobe, on both sides. This atlas draws the part it lies in as one shape, so it cannot be lit apart; lit: that whole part. It is the part of the occipital lobe above the calcarine sulcus. BodyParts3D draws each occipital lobe as one shape with no cuneus, lingual gyrus or calcarine sulcus of its own, so the whole lobe is lit and no line is drawn between them. [1][3]
Held by the occipital lobe — see the whole lobe on its own page.
The cuneus is above the calcarine sulcus and the lingual gyrus is below it. [2]
In front of it, across the parieto-occipital sulcus, lies the precuneus of the parietal lobe. [4]
What it does
It receives visual information from the upper quarter of the retina on the same side, which sees the lower quarter of the visual field on the opposite side. [1]
Its striate cortex, the primary visual cortex lining the calcarine sulcus, sends its output to the extrastriate areas (Brodmann 18 and 19), where mid-level visual processing is shaped by attention, working memory and the expectation of reward. [1]
Connections
The back part of the precuneus, along the parieto-occipital fissure, connects with visual areas in the cuneus. [4]
Other names
Cuneus is Latin for “wedge”; the plural is cunei. It is sometimes described as a smaller lobe within the occipital lobe. [1]
Size
The model has no shape for the cuneus itself, so it is not measured here. The whole left occipital lobe that holds it measures about 63 mm front to back, 54 mm top to bottom and 44 mm side to side on this model (the box it fits in, not its volume). [3]
Facts describe anatomy and normal function only. The 3D model is the adult male BodyParts3D brain (credits and licence); real brains vary in size and shape, so its measurements describe one model, not anyone’s brain.