<P> A stone circle is a monument of standing stones arranged in a circle . Such monuments have been constructed in many parts of the world throughout history for many different reasons . The best known tradition of stone circle construction occurred across the British Isles and Brittany , France in the Late Neolithic and Early Bronze Age . More than 1000 examples survive to this day , including such famous examples as Avebury , the Rollright Stones and Stonehenge . Another prehistoric stone circle tradition occurred in southern Scandinavia during the Iron Age , where they were built as mortuary monuments to the dead . </P>
stone monuments often collective tombs from europe 's neolithic period are often referred to as
stone circle