This rectangular hall-like structure, stretching 17.35 metres east to west and 6.85 metres north to south, rises two storeys high with walls nearly a metre thick. The building features the remnants of a projecting tower at its southwest corner and a later extension at the northwest angle, whilst a possible bawn wall connects to its eastern end, suggesting this was once part of a larger defensive complex.

The architectural details reveal a structure built for both defence and domestic comfort. The main entrance, located at the western end of the south wall, retains an intriguing defensive feature; the remains of a murder hole, which would have allowed defenders to attack unwelcome visitors trapped between the inner and outer doorways. The surviving archstone displays hammer dressing with fine tool margins, a technique that dates the doorway to the late sixteenth century. Inside, a large fireplace with an adjoining oven occupies the western gable’s north side, indicating the building served residential purposes alongside its defensive role. Curiously, no evidence of a stairwell has been found, leaving questions about how the upper floor was accessed.

Historical records offer tantalisingly little about this enigmatic structure. The Down Survey map of 1655 to 1656 marks it as ‘supposed to be the ruins of a fortress’, whilst the Ordnance Survey letters note that local people knew nothing of its history even by the nineteenth century. This lack of oral tradition surrounding such a substantial building adds to its mystery, leaving visitors to wonder about the lives of those who once walked its halls and defended its walls during Ireland’s turbulent medieval and early modern periods.