The geometry of the penetration was consistent with the weapon having been delivered from roughly the level of the mastodon’s flank — an angle that would be expected if the weapon had been thrown or thrust horizontally or at a slightly downward angle into the animal’s side.

This geometric information is consistent with the most commonly inferred method of delivering projectile points to large animals: a spear or dart thrown or thrust into the animal’s flank, where the ribs protect the vital organs of the chest cavity.

The rib itself — which took the impact that stopped the projectile — is positioned on the outer surface of the chest cavity.

A weapon that struck a rib would have been directed approximately at the chest, aimed at the heart, lungs, or great vessels behind the rib cage.