The suspensory apparatus of the hoof is the mechanism by which the hoof wall is attached to the distal phalanx (coffin bone); as the sole of the hoof does not rest on the ground (concavity of the sole), the bone is effectively 'suspended' from the inside of the hoof capsule. Structures involved in this mechanism include the tight bond at the dermal-epidermal junction in stratum internum (junction of the sensitive and insensitive lamella) and the deep digital flexor tendon.