The stapedius is the smallest skeletal muscle in the human body. At just over one millimeter in length, its purpose is to stabilize the smallest bone in the body, the stapes.

CT: Chorda tympani; I: Incus; JB: Jugular bulb; LSC: Lateral semicircular canal; M: Malleus; PSC: Posterior semicircular canal; S: Stapes; SM: Stapedius muscle; SSC: Superior semicircular canal; VIIms: mastoid segment of VII cranial nerve; VIIts: tympanic segment of VII cranial nerve.