SummaryA patient treated for routine dental care had a medical history of temporoman‐dibular joint trauma. A pretreatment panoramic radiograph showed evidence of a fractured condyle; however, further radiographic testing showed no fracture and that the original fracture seen was an artifact. This artifact may have been caused by superimposition of ear cartilage over the mandibular condyle during radiography.By coincidence, the patient was injured in an area that fit the original radiographic observation of a condylar fracture. However, it would be rare to find a condyle with the distal portion fractured at the angle indicated on the radiograph, and unusual for such a condition to remain undetected for 9 years. Remodeling of the bone would have been expected, and this would affect the appearance of the supposed fracture.