The Long Stone derives its name from the fascinating history of the surrounding area.

Over a thousand years ago, in 837 AD Norsemen who had blazed a trail across the seas from Scandinavia landed at the mouth of the river we now know as the Liffey.

As some of the first residents in the region, they erected a tall stone pillar in the sea, as was their custom to symbolise their possession of the surrounding lands and a new area of settlement.

This long stone or 'steyne' in turn gave it's name to one of the many small rivers that were tributaries to the Liffey and in turn to the surrounding sandy plains that bordered the sea.

Land reclaimation has since changed this area of the south inner city beyond recognition. The programme that was started by Alderman Hawkins in 1663 was to change the face of modern Dublin as the boundaries of the sea were extended to Ringsend.

During all this excavation, the steyne stood until 1794. A modern day representation now stands at the front of Pearse Street Garda Station, a few hundred yards away.

The Steyne and Lazar's Hill.

In the seventeenth century a tour around Dublin's south inner city might have entailed taking a swim, as much of the land was under water and had yet to be reclaimed.

Some of the first residents of the area were the Norsemen, who in 837 AD berthed at what is now the junction of Hawkins Street and Townsend Street. It was the custom of this seafaring race to erect a pillar stone at their point of landing. The pillar stone or 'Steyne' (Stein) symbolised their possession of land and marked a new area of settlement. It gave its name to the surrounding district as well as to a tributary of the River Liffey. Beside the Steyne an artificial mound, known as the Thingmound or Thingmote, was constructed. It was here the Vikings assembled and decisions affecting the customs and laws of the tribe were made. This large mound of earth survived until the close of the seventeenth century, when it was removed by the Lord Chief Justice and used to raise the original level of Nassau Street by eight feet. A modern representation of the Steyne now stands at the same spot as its predecessor.

In Medieval times Townsend Street was known as Lazars Hill, and was the only route out of Dublin towards Ringsend. To the North lay marshy swamp and flatlands, while to the South orchard gardens and fields extended as far as the parks of Trinity College. Along the Lazar's Hill lepers would journey to a hospice founded in 1220 before embarking on a pilgrimage to the shrine of Saint Iago de Compostella. Lazar's Hill was derived from the word 'Lazaretto' meaning quarantine station and was frequently corrupted to Lousy Hill or Lazy Hill.