The paper discusses the seven so called sword sharpening stones (Fi.
miekanhiontakivi) or groove stones – stones with polished grooves and
polishing surfaces known in Finland. These stones have been
traditionally been considered to date from the Iron Age (500 BCE – 1200
CE) and to have been part of Iron Age rituals. The ritual function must
be seen as unfounded, as all the features of these stones can be
explained with processing polishes stone tools either in the Stone Age
or in the Iron Age. This is supported by international parallels, like
morphologically identical Neolithic polisseur stones in France. The
exact dating of Finnish groove stones must be left open. They are
certainly prehistoric, but otherwise archaeological excavation would be
needed to assess the dating more precisely.