This article is only available in the PDF format. Download the PDF to view the article, as well as its associated figures and tables. The present preliminary study of the hip joint was made on a series of embryos and fetuses collected in cases of therapeutically interrupted pregnancies of varying duration. It is felt that the majority of standard works dealing with embryology and developmental anatomy do not give sufficient information with regard to the development of the structures forming the hip joint to be of great value to the orthopedic surgeon, and this preliminary report may stimulate further work on a subject repelete with data capable of practical application. METHOD The embryo or fetus was split sagittally in the midline, after which the specimen was cut through the trunk in the horizontal plane just above the level of the hip joint. The hip joint was found to be on a level with the symphysis pubis anteriorly and at the level of the first or the second sacral segment posteriorly. Serial sections were cut