1 4 0 0 ▁AD . ▁ ▁Modern ▁theories ▁ ▁The ▁purpose ▁Meg al ith s ▁were ▁used ▁for ▁a ▁variety ▁of ▁purposes ▁r anging ▁from ▁serving ▁as ▁boundary ▁markers ▁of ▁territory , ▁to ▁a ▁rem inder ▁of ▁past ▁events , ▁and ▁to ▁being ▁part ▁of ▁the ▁society ' s ▁religion . ▁Common ▁mot ifs ▁including ▁cro oks ▁and ▁axes ▁seem ▁to ▁be ▁symbols ▁of ▁political ▁power , ▁much ▁as ▁the ▁cro ok ▁was ▁a ▁symbol ▁of ▁Egypt ian ▁ph ara oh s . ▁Among st ▁the ▁ind igen ous ▁pe op les ▁of ▁India , ▁Malays ia , ▁Pol yn esia , ▁North ▁Africa , ▁North ▁America , ▁and ▁South ▁America , ▁the ▁worship ▁of ▁these ▁stones , ▁or ▁the ▁use ▁of ▁these ▁stones ▁to ▁symbol ize ▁a ▁spirit ▁or ▁de ity , ▁is ▁a ▁possibility . ▁In ▁the ▁early ▁ 2 0 th   century , ▁some ▁sch ol ars ▁believed ▁that ▁all ▁meg al ith s ▁belonged ▁to ▁one ▁global ▁" M eg al ith ic ▁culture " ▁( hyper diff usion ism , ▁e . ▁g . ▁" the ▁Manchester ▁school ", ▁by ▁G raft on ▁Elli ot ▁Smith ▁and ▁William ▁James ▁Perry ), ▁but ▁this ▁has ▁long ▁been ▁dis pro ved ▁by ▁modern ▁d ating ▁methods . ▁Nor ▁is ▁it ▁believed ▁any ▁longer ▁that ▁there ▁was ▁a ▁pan - Europe an ▁meg al ith ic ▁culture , ▁although ▁regional ▁cult ures ▁existed , ▁even ▁within ▁such ▁small ▁areas ▁as ▁the ▁British ▁Is les . ▁ ▁The ▁arch ae