<p>"From about AD. 700 to 1600, sculptors [created/have created] nearly 1,000 colossal rock statues on the remote and tiny Easter Island."</p>
<p>I was wondering what this rule is called, and how do you know which one is correct? Can someone please explain when you use the past tense and when you use have/had + past tense? Thanks!</p>
<p>(The correct answer is created)</p>
<p>Created is in the perfect tense, meaning it happened in the past. (they were creating it from 200 to 1600 AD, so unless you have some advanced device that lets you project to the future, that time period is in the past. 
)</p>
<p>“Have created” is present perfect, meaning it’s in the recent past, happening JUST before the present. For example:</p>
<p>Now that they have created half their statue, they are going to the store to buy more clay.</p>
<p>They are currently going to the store, but them creating the statue literally just happened in the past, perhaps ten minutes ago. Understood? :)</p>
<p>Thanks! Good luck if youre taking an SAT today</p>