This short stretch of wall, measuring roughly 5.8 metres long and standing over 3 metres tall, appears to be all that remains of what was once a bawn wall; a defensive enclosure that would have protected the tower house and its inhabitants during Ireland’s more lawless centuries. Built from roughly coursed rubble masonry about a metre thick, the wall contains a blocked loop, one of those narrow openings that would have allowed defenders to fire upon attackers whilst remaining relatively protected themselves.

The wall’s relationship with the tower house is somewhat complicated by later additions to the site. A building constructed between the two structures has separated what were likely once connected defensive features, making it harder to read the original layout of this fortified homestead. At the western end of the wall fragment stands a tall gate pier, though this appears to be a later addition as it isn’t bonded to the original masonry, suggesting that the entrance arrangements were modified at some point in the structure’s long history.

These remnants offer a tangible connection to the realities of life in medieval and early modern Ireland, when even relatively modest landowners needed to fortify their homes against raids and local conflicts. The survival of even this small section of bawn wall at Barberstown provides valuable evidence of how these defensive complexes were constructed and modified over time, reflecting the changing security needs and architectural fashions of successive generations who called this place home.