The ovaries are almond - shaped and -sized female gonads in which the oocytes (female gametes or germ cells) develop. They are also endocrine glands that produce reproductive hormones. Each ovary is suspended by a short peritoneal fold or mesentery, the mesovarium. The mesovarium is a subdivision of a larger mesentery of the uterus, the broad ligament.

In prepubertal females, the connective tissue capsule (tunica albuginea of the ovary) comprising the surface of the ovary is covered by a smooth layer of ovarian mesothelium or surface (germinal) epithelium, a single layer of cuboidal cells that gives the surface a dull, grayish appearance, contrasting with the shiny surface of the adjacent peritoneal mesovarium with which it is continuous. After puberty, the ovarian surface epithelium becomes progressively scarred and distorted because of the repeated rupture of ovarian follicles and discharge of oocytes during ovulation. The scarring is less in women who have been taking oral contraceptives that inhibit ovulation.

The ovarian vessels, lymphatics, and nerves cross the pelvic brim, passing to and from the superolateral aspect of the ovary within a peritoneal fold, the suspensory ligament of the ovary, which becomes continuous with the mesovarium of the broad ligament. Medially within the mesovarium, a short ligament of ovary tethers the ovary to the uterus. Consequently the ovaries are typically found laterally between the uterus and the lateral pelvic wall during a manual or ultrasonic pelvic examination. The ligament of ovary is a remnant of the superior part of the ovarian gubernaculum of the fetus. The ligament of the ovary connects the proximal (uterine) end of the ovary to the lateral angle of the uterus, just inferior to the entrance of the uterine tube. Because the ovary is suspended in the peritoneal cavity and its surface is not covered by peritoneum, the oocyte expelled at ovulation passes into the peritoneal cavity. However, its intraperitoneal life is short because it is normally trapped by the fimbriae of the infundibulum of the uterine tube and carried into the ampulla, where it may be fertilized.