Benign cervical erosion is one of the most frequent findings noted in pelvic examination.1, 2 It has been evaluated by cytologic studies, very exhaustively by histopathologic investigations, but quite rarely by colposcopy.3–5 Since colposcopy (magnified stereoscopic visualization of the cervix under bright illumination) affords a panoramic view of the cervical portio and refines gross inspection, we believe it can add to our knowledge of benign as well as malignant cervical change. Hence the use of colposcopy in this study.The term cervical erosion is a clinical one indicating an area of velvety reddening of varying intensity and extent surrounding the anatomical external cervical os. Many names are used more or less interchangeably, some with connotations of mechanism or causation: cervicitis, endocervicitis, eversion, ectropion, pseudoerosion, diseased cervix, and, much less commonly, misplaced or heteroplastic endocervical tissue,6 vermilion halo,7 and mucoepithelial hyperplasia.8 Various self-explanatory adjectives are also applied: simple, follicular, glandular, papillary, cystic, friable, polypoid, nonspecific, ulcerative, chronic, congenital, and acquired. The prime symptom of erosion is leukorrhea; occasionally there is bleeding. Grossly, the cervix may suggest malignant change. The true nature of the lesion cannot be determined by naked-eye inspection and further evaluation may be necessary to ascertain more definitely the presence or absence of malignancy. Our aim in this study is to determine what is present colposcopically when a woman has a benign cervical erosion, including an attempt to ascertain whether there is a loss of surface epithelium, as some9, 10 believe, or whether a covering surface epithelial layer is present.11–13 To simplify matters we have chosen to limit our investigation to nonpregnant women of the childbearing age.