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bcustead t1_itzl8j6 wrote

You're right that the stones don't give us a lot of direct information, but we can learn some things from it. For example, the sorts of tools used on it tells us about the technological level of the builders and the style of construction and source of the stones can give us clues about who built it. These can help narrow down the site's age.

Our most accurate method to determine the age of such sites is radiocarbon dating, but radiocarbon dating requires organic material. So we date the other archaeological artifacts that are found at such sites such as remains from its construction or evidence of the site's use. From these we can make inferences about the age of the stone construction.

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hoofdletter OP t1_itzpiex wrote

That's a very nice explanation! Thank you!

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ParatusLetum t1_iu07rhh wrote

Piggybacking on that I seem to recall that charcoal remains of fires can be useful. We figure the tree that was used might be in an average age range for that tree narrows the window down considerably. Often times these sites were used for gatherings or ceremonies so they would use fire to cook and for warmth etc.

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hoofdletter OP t1_iu09mzd wrote

That's also a very interesting way to investigate that.

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