Some researchers believe that they could also have been used to saw wood and cut stone, when they were not grinding wheat, due to similarity in the arrangement of the mills with those found in some Roman mines in Spain and Wales, as well as with the sawmill at Hierapolis (3rd century AD ), where a rack saw was similarly activated.
It is known that the complex remained in use during the 2nd and 3rd centuries AD, and then gradually declined until its complete destruction and abandonment in the 5th century, coinciding with the invasions that put an end to the western empire.