These weathered limestone walls once formed an L-shaped dwelling, complete with a projecting angle tower at its western corner. Though time has taken its toll; the northeastern gable has collapsed entirely, along with the eastern section of the southeastern wall; enough remains to piece together the building’s original two-storey design with attic space above. The structure sits in good company, with the remnants of a house site visible to the south and an ancient ringwork fortification to the northeast.

The house originally stood within a bawn, an Irish term for a defensive courtyard typical of plantation-era fortified homes. This irregular enclosure stretched approximately 50 metres from north to south, its boundaries still traceable through an earthen and stone bank that rises half a metre on the inside and a full metre on the exterior. The bank, measuring three metres wide, appears to have had an entrance gap on its southeastern side. Together, the house and bawn formed a modest but functional defensive complex designed to protect its inhabitants during uncertain times.

Historical records provide a glimpse into the site’s past inhabitants and condition. The Civil Survey of 1654-6 describes it as ‘a castle and the walls of a stone house and some thatcht cabbins’, painting a picture of a small settlement rather than a solitary fortress. Richard Bourke held the property in 1640, his name recorded amongst the landed gentry of the period. Today, these ruins stand as a testament to the complex layers of Irish history; from medieval ringworks to seventeenth-century plantation settlements; all gradually returning to the mountainous landscape from which they were built.