Staddle stone

Another of the assorted objects in our garden.  We have had this one for about 35 years.  It was in the garden of our old farmhouse near Shaftesbury and we've taken it with us ever since.  It is made of Shaftesbury green sand and would originally have been one of the four supports for a wooden granary building standing on top of it.  The old farmhouse dated from the 1660s, but I've no idea how old the staddle stone is.  It's a traditional design with the flat topped cap sitting on the separate pyramidal base.