Datestone
title: "Datestone" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["types-of-archaeological-artefact", "dating-methodologies-in-archaeology"] topic_path: "philosophy" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Datestone" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0
::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c4/Datestone.jpg" caption="A datestone"] ::
::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/70/Datestone_-geograph.org.uk-_220616.jpg" caption="A datestone on Knypersley First School"] ::
A datestone is typically an embedded stone with the date of engraving and other information carved into it. They are not considered a very reliable source for dating a house, as instances of old houses being destroyed and rebuilt (with the old date stones intact) have been reported, or may in some cases be the date of a renovation or alteration.
Specific locations have often been chosen for datestones, viz.
- corbel
- gable stone
- Gatepost: a large upright piece of (usually) granite, usually set at the entrance to a driveway or a field.
- keystone
- lintel
References
References
- Lindop, Roy. (1975). "Stories of Turton Date Stones". [[Turton Local History Society]].
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