Around 344, the vineyards of Ay were already known to the Gallo-Romans. Originally, Ay is surely a “villa”, in its Latin meaning. It is said to have been founded by a man called Ageius. Later, King Henry IV became lord of Ay and made his wine known at the French court. On the Liberation Square, in the heart of the city centre, a strange granite world map weighing almost 11,000 pounds (5 tonnes) is on display. It can be rotated even by a child, as it rests on a water cushion.