A merestone is a marker used to show boundaries or guide the way. In history, merestones were often placed between properties or along paths to help people know where they were and where they were going. They were set firmly in place to last over time, symbolizing stability, clarity, and trust—qualities that make them a fitting symbol for guidance and consistency today.
What is a Merstone?
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The word “merestone” dates back to Old English (before 1150), where it originally referred to a stone used to mark a boundary.
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-In early days, removing a Merestone without permission was considered a serious offense, often resulting in indictments and legal consequences.
-In 19th-century England, some merestones (boundary markers) were inscribed with owners’ initials or marks, essentially serving as “you’re over my side of the yard” signs long before fences were cool.
-Point Pleasant Park, Halifax — In 1895 the British War Department set a series of granite survey/boundary markers around the park during a “perambulation” to assert the peninsula’s limits. They’re engraved with the broad arrow symbol (marks British government property)
-Britain’s Aiggin Stone is described as both a boundary stone and a medieval waymarker on the trans-Pennine route.