What is recorded here

No human body is visible, but the rock still marks a place where people gathered, watched the road, or left a name behind. The shopping centre has changed the horizon, yet the stone remains the oldest visible thing on that strip of grass. Its cups may be natural, medieval, or human-made, but the chamber itself is real: a small room where memory still has corners.

This sub-triangular-shaped stone (L 1.05m x Wth 1m x H 0.9m) has been moved to its present location on a green area in front of Ballinteer Shopping Centre, Co. Dublin, adjacent to the bus shelter. The original location of this rock is unknown. There are at least 6 cup-marks visible on one face of the rock. There is evidence of stone cutting channels on the surface and on the side of the stone, and these holes may be related to this type of stone cutting rather than the remains of prehistoric cup-marks. Compiled by: Caimin O'Brien based on details provided by Martin Fitzmaurice

This cupmarked stone is likely from the Neolithic or Bronze Age period, dating to between 4000 and 500 BC. Cupmarked stones are often associated with ritual or ceremonial use, possibly linked to fertility, water sources, or astronomical observations, though specific folklore or local traditions connected to this stone are not recorded.

The monument record does not grant public access. Check the route and ask the landowner before entering private land.