The rectangular feature, measuring approximately 28 by 34 metres internally with an outer perimeter of 40 by 37 metres, shows up as a cropmark; a telltale sign where buried archaeological features affect crop growth, creating patterns visible from above. A modern field boundary cuts through the southern portion of the site, but the distinctive rectangular ditch that once defined this enclosure remains clearly visible in orthoimagery.

This potential moated site was first spotted in Digital Globe imagery taken between 2011 and 2013, but it shows up particularly well in Google Earth photographs from April 2022. These medieval earthworks, typically dating from the 13th to 14th centuries, were defensive homesteads built by Anglo-Norman settlers and wealthy Gaelic families. The moat, essentially a water-filled ditch surrounding a raised platform, would have protected a timber hall or tower house at the centre, creating both a practical defence and a symbol of status in medieval Ireland.

The discovery, documented by Johnny Ryan from the Forest Service’s archaeological team and compiled by Caimin O’Brien in March 2023, adds to our understanding of medieval settlement patterns in Westmeath. Though now completely levelled and visible only through crop patterns, this site once stood as part of a network of fortified farmsteads that dotted the Irish midlands during the later medieval period, when control of productive agricultural land near important lakes like Lough Derravaragh meant both wealth and strategic advantage.