The spleen is considered ‘the forgotten organ’ among radiologists and clinicians, although it is well visualised on abdominal computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging. Moreover, the spleen is commonly involved in a wide range of pathologic disorders. These include congenital anomalies, infectious and inflammatory diseases, vascular disorders, benign and malignant tumours, and systemic disorders. In this review, we focus on the key imaging findings of the normal spleen, its variants, as well as relevant congenital and acquired abnormalities. It is of utmost importance to recognise and correctly interpret the variable spectrum of abnormalities that may involve the spleen, in order to avoid unnecessary invasive procedures and to guide adequate treatment.Compared to imaging evaluation of other upper abdominal organs, requests for imaging of the spleen are relatively rare in daily clinical practice. However, the spleen may be involved in a large variety of congenital and acquired disorders. Significant overlap in imaging features among these various conditions is seen; therefore, clinical information is important. The purpose of this paper is to give a comprehensive overview of splenic imaging.The splenic parenchyma consists of lymphatic follicles and reticuloendothelial cells, surrounding the arteries (‘white pulp’) and an interspersed network of vascular sinusoids (‘red pulp’). The ratio of white to red pulp increases with age due to accumulated antigenic exposure and stimulation. There are two circulatory routes through the splenic pulp: open and closed circulation. The closed ‘fast flow’ circulation drains blood directly into the venous sinusoids, flowing together to become trabecular veins