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A question about a holed stone in Penwith

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GLADMAN G
GLADMAN May 9, 2010 16:14:38
Replying to thesweetcheat

thesweetcheat wrote:
Pretty sure it's a modern addition June, although I've never seen it before. There are quite a number of megalithic follies around Penwith (there's even a fake stone circle near the coast path between St Ives and Zennor!).
There are some holed stones at Tregeseal, though, aren't there? - although I've never actually got to them being near to such a fantastic 'circle. Plus Odin's stone at Stenness, of course.

Interesting... with the discussions we had recently about the prehistoric pedigree of cairns, I guess the same arguments apply to standing stones?
How do we know, without excavation, whether a standing stone is the real deal or just erected by a farmer as a scratching post?

T thesweetcheat
thesweetcheat May 9, 2010 16:22:15
Replying to GLADMAN

GLADMAN wrote:
thesweetcheat wrote:
Pretty sure it's a modern addition June, although I've never seen it before. There are quite a number of megalithic follies around Penwith (there's even a fake stone circle near the coast path between St Ives and Zennor!).
There are some holed stones at Tregeseal, though, aren't there? - although I've never actually got to them being near to such a fantastic 'circle. Plus Odin's stone at Stenness, of course.

Interesting... with the discussions we had recently about the prehistoric pedigree of cairns, I guess the same arguments apply to standing stones?
How do we know, without excavation, whether a standing stone is the real deal or just erected by a farmer as a scratching post?

You're right, we don't! Our recent trip to the North York moors was interesting, there are lots of standing stones (some very large) but very little evidence one way or another of prehistoric-ness.

The holed stones at Tregeseal are great:

http://www.themodernantiquarian.com/site/4673/tregeseal_holed_stones.html

and there is a holed stone in use as a gatepost even nearer to Merry Maidens which seems to be generally accepted as ancient even though we've all seen hundreds of suspiciously megalithic gateposts (particularly in the SW and the Peak District).

http://www.themodernantiquarian.com/site/4822/choone_holed_stone.html

W wideford
wideford May 9, 2010 18:19:25
Replying to GLADMAN

[quote="GLADMANInteresting... with the discussions we had recently about the prehistoric pedigree of cairns, I guess the same arguments apply to standing stones?
How do we know, without excavation, whether a standing stone is the real deal or just erected by a farmer as a scratching post?[/quote]

Once I saw a very large stone, several metres, propped up on a small building site. So I says to a senior archaeologist about how it has obviously just been moved and should the site of its removal be looked and. Her reply - that now the stone has been moved the context has been lost. Blimey.

T tiompan
tiompan May 9, 2010 18:48:43
Replying to GLADMAN

GLADMAN wrote:
Interesting... with the discussions we had recently about the prehistoric pedigree of cairns, I guess the same arguments apply to standing stones?
How do we know, without excavation, whether a standing stone is the real deal or just erected by a farmer as a scratching post?
For much the same reasons , we don't .Although there are many more cairns than standing stones and the stones are more likely to be marked on the early O.S amps giving us a clue if they are not to at least a possibility that they post date the map .
Genuine prehistoric stones have also been moved and re-erected which is another problem .