The antlers of the prehistoric deer Megaloceros giganteus inspire awe and bemusement in equal measure. They were the largest the world has ever known — up to 12 feet wide and five feet high — atop the head of a creature otherwise no taller than a modern moose.

But when does such grandeur cross the line into parody? Many deer use their antlers to spar for mates and territory. It can be hard to believe that M. giganteus, saddled as it was with a set the size of a Fiat 500, “was able to hold its head up, let alone fight,” said Philip Cox, an anatomy professor at the University of York in England.

Some paleontologists have argued that the impressive head ornaments were just for show. But a study published last week in Proceedings of the Royal Society B used a novel method to suggest that the deer’s giant antlers were indeed colossal combat weapons, and to suggest how they may have been wielded.

To prove that the giant antlers were used in ancient deer-on-deer conflict, Ada Klinkhamer, a paleontologist at the University of New England in Australia and the lead author of the paper, devised a method of “virtual crash testing,” she said.