This moated site, positioned 365 metres east of Glenlary Cottage, represents a medieval defensive structure that once protected a farmstead or manor house. The site consists of a raised platform measuring approximately 36 metres north to south and 37 metres east to west, surrounded by the remains of what would have been a water-filled ditch or fosse; a common defensive feature of medieval Ireland.

Historical maps reveal the site’s evolution over time. The 1840 Ordnance Survey shows it as a raised rectangular area defined by a scarp, whilst the more detailed 1897 edition depicts its square shape more clearly. A later field boundary, constructed sometime after 1700, cuts through the southeastern section of the fosse, demonstrating how agricultural practices have gradually encroached upon these medieval remains. Modern satellite imagery from Digital Globe and Google Earth continues to show the outline of this structure, proving its remarkable survival despite centuries of farming activity.

The proximity of a possible barrow just 60 metres to the east hints at a landscape with a much longer history of human occupation. These moated sites, typically dating from the 13th to 15th centuries, were built by Anglo-Norman settlers and wealthy Gaelic families as fortified homesteads. The water-filled moat served both defensive and status purposes, whilst the raised platform would have supported timber or stone buildings. Today, this grassy mound in Glenlary stands as a subtle reminder of medieval life in rural Limerick, its earthen banks still visible to those who pause to read the landscape’s ancient stories.