From its origin under the anterior border of the sternocleidomastoid the superior thyroid artery runs upward and forward for a short distance in the carotid triangle, where it is covered by the skin, platysma, and fascia; it then arches downward beneath the omohyoid, sternohyoid, and sternothyroid muscles.

To its medial side are the inferior pharyngeal constrictor muscle and the external branch of the superior laryngeal nerve.

One, the larger, supplies principally the anterior surface; on the isthmus of the gland it connects with the corresponding artery of the opposite side.

A second branch descends on the posterior surface of the gland and anastomoses with the inferior thyroid artery.

This article incorporates text in the public domain from page 552 of the 20th edition of Gray's Anatomy (1918)