Sagittal view of the basal ganglia and internal capsule.  The C-shaped lateral ventricle has been opened to expose within its walls the caudate nucleus and hippocampus.  In this lateral dissection, structures located medial to the insular cortex (extreme capsule, claustrum, external capsule and putamen) have been removed to expose the globus pallidus and, medial to it, the internal capsule.  Medial to the internal capsule, hidden from view, is the thalamus.  The head and body of the caudate nucleus lie in the floor of the anterior horn and body of the lateral ventricle; the slender tail of the caudate continues anteriorly in the roof of the inferior horn of the lateral ventricle.  (Image courtesy of AL Rhoton, Jr.)