Setting large stones upright is one of the features of the megalithic culture which flourished in Britain in the late Neolithic and Early Bronze Age. Standing stones can occur singly or in pairs, and are often associated with other megalithic sites, particularly stone circles.

They seem to have played an important role in the ceremonial and ritual life of the times, and may have served a variety of purposes, perhaps as memorial stones or grave markers, way markers or territorial boundary stones.