The location, set within cultivated tillage fields, was once home to an O’Mahony castle, one of many fortifications built by this prominent Gaelic family who controlled much of the southwestern coastline during the medieval period. Though Lewis’s 1837 topographical dictionary mentioned “some remains of ancient castles” existing at Lisgriffin, no visible traces of the structure survive above ground today, leaving researchers to piece together its story from historical records and the surrounding landscape.

The site’s archaeological significance extends beyond the lost castle itself. Just to the west-southwest lies what may be a souterrain, one of those mysterious underground passages that dot the Irish countryside and likely date from the early medieval period. These subterranean structures, whether used for storage, refuge, or ritual purposes, often indicate long-term settlement and suggest that this location held strategic or economic importance well before the O’Mahonys built their castle here.

The complete absence of visible remains speaks to the thoroughness with which many Irish castles were demolished or simply robbed for building stone over the centuries. What was once a symbol of O’Mahony power, controlling views across the approaches to Barley Cove and the surrounding countryside, has been reduced to a reference number in archaeological inventories and a few lines in historical texts. Yet the site remains significant as part of the broader network of O’Mahony strongholds that once dominated this corner of Cork, reminding us that even empty fields can hold centuries of hidden history.