Abstract The four heart valves are arranged in different planes from each other. The aortic valve is most centrally located being related to all four cardiac chambers. Similar in construction to the pulmonary valve in possessing semilunar leaflets, neither valve has a ring-like annulus. Instead, the semilunar insertions of the leaflets form a crown-like arrangement. The semilunar valves are complexes comprising not only of leaflets but their attachments to arterial walls and adjoining ventricular structures at the ventriculo-arterial junction. The mitral and tricuspid valves guarding the atrioventricular junctions comprise of leaflets hinged to the junction, and have tendinous cords mainly anchored to papillary muscles that are inserted into ventricular walls to the support apparatus. A complete fibrous annulus is lacking, especially in the tricuspid valve and along the hinge line of the posterior mitral leaflet. This article also reviews the relationships of each valvar component and to adjacent cardiac structures.