The present invention concerns a space holder, especially for vertebrae or intervertebral discs for implantation into human or animal organisms, having a cylinder-like body (1) and, at the ends of the cylinder-like body, means (2) provided for connecting to adjacent body parts, said cylinder-like body (1) essentially being formed as a solid cylinder from at least one material that is elastically deformable under the conditions of use, such that the space holder is compressible and extensible in the axial direction and, with reference to means (2) provided at the ends for connecting the space holder to adjacent body parts, can bend about a radial axis of rotation (13).