Oral Histology - Oral Mucous Membrane Fig.
Bone is at the left, the epithelium is at the right, and in between is the lamina propria.
The epithelium of the attached gingiva is penetrated by large connective tissue papillae, while the epithelium of the alveolar mucosa is thinner and contains no connective tissue papillae. The vessels visible beneath the alveolar mucosa cause it to appear bright red, whereas the thicker gingiva appears pink.