Abstract: The sesamoid bones of the feet have been studied on 916 adult feet roentgenograms in Zaozhuang, Shandong. The main results are as follows.
1. There were one to seven sesamoid bones in a foot, among which the two-sesamoid-bone type occurred most frequently (77. 8%) , the three-sesamoid-bone type occurred in 16. 9%.
2. The sesamoid bones beneath the head of metatarsals occurred in 94. 5%, and that beneath the interphalangeal joint of the hallux occurred in 5. 5%.
3. The pereentage distribution of the sesamoid bones beneath the head of the first metatarsal occurred in 99. 9%, that beneath the fifth metatarsal in 6. 4%, and that beneath the interphalangeal joint of the hallux in 12. 6%.
4. 3. 9% of cases appear as the bipartite and tripartite sesamoid bones. This percentage is much lower than that of the Europeans and Americans.
5. It is thought that the formation and development of the sesamoid bone in human foot are both eongenital and acquired.

Key words: Sesamoid bones of the foot; Anthropometry