The site’s most prominent feature is a distinctive circular mound, measuring 15 metres across and rising 8 metres high, with a flat top that gives it the appearance of a small motte. Around the summit’s perimeter, you can still make out traces of what was once either a circular bank or a stone wall, now covered in grass. These remains mark the location of a castle that met its end in 1504, when Mac William de Burgo destroyed it during one of the many territorial disputes that characterised medieval Ireland.

The ridge itself shows signs of extensive earthworks, though the southern end has been significantly disturbed over the centuries. Local tradition holds that a grand mansion once stood at the foot of the mound, supposedly impressive enough to boast six chimneys. While the mansion has long since vanished, leaving only stories and a single architectural remnant; the keystone of an arch; its memory persists in local folklore. The disturbance to the landscape likely occurred when this later building was constructed, altering the medieval defensive earthworks that had stood there for centuries.

Archaeological surveys have documented this site as part of County Galway’s rich medieval heritage, noting its transformation from a defensive structure to a local landmark wrapped in layers of history and myth. The combination of physical remains and oral tradition creates a compelling picture of how these ancient sites continue to capture imaginations, even as nature slowly reclaims them. Today, visitors can still climb the mound and imagine both the medieval castle that once crowned it and the later mansion that local memory refuses to forget.