A mathematical and mechanical analysis of nasal support has shown that the nasal septum bears a portion of the load on the nose. This portion is greater when the nose is broad and the septum short and thick. The proportion of the load carried by the septum varied from 8% to 62%. Static and dynamic loading experiments showed that an injury from one side is likely to fracture the nasal bone, on the same side low down near the nasomaxillary suture and on the other side up near the nasal dorsum. Bends in the nasal bones and septum and the groove formed by the anterior ethmoidal nerve are sites of potential weakness.