A number of panoramic radiographic images of the condylar head taken at various horizontal angulations were compared. A small artificial osteophyte was attached to the eight different portions of the condylar head and a small hole was created in four different portions of the condylar head. Three oral and maxillofacial radiologists evaluated the panoramic condylar images. The results were as follows : 1. Osteophytes in the superomedial, anterocentral and anterolateral portions could be detected easily, but those in the lateral, superolateral and medial portions were very hard to identify. 2. The greater the condylar horizontal angle, the easier it was to detect an osteophyte. But there was no statistically significant difference except between 0 and 40 degrees of horizontal angulation. 3. Holes in the anterocentral and superocentral portions could be detected easily, but those in the lateral and medial portions were very hard to identify. There were no differences between the various condylar horizontal angles.