This fortified enclosure, measuring 25 metres east to west and 20 metres north to south, once provided protection for a tower house that stood within its walls. The bawn forms part of a larger archaeological landscape that includes a multiperiod field system, evidence of centuries of agricultural activity in this corner of Clare.

The defensive walls of the bawn showcase the practical construction methods of medieval Irish builders, who used roughly hewn limestone blocks laid horizontally to create a formidable barrier. Today, the western and northern sections of the wall stand as the best preserved portions of the structure, with an internal height of 0.5 to 0.6 metres and an impressive external height reaching up to 1.8 metres in places. The eastern wall has largely collapsed, though its line can still be traced through scattered rubble and a distinct scarp in the landscape.

Bawns like this one served as essential defensive features for Irish tower houses from the 15th to 17th centuries, providing a secure courtyard where livestock could be protected during raids and where daily activities could be carried out under the watchful eye of those in the tower. The Glensleade bawn’s position within an existing field system suggests it was integrated into a working agricultural landscape, combining defensive needs with the practical requirements of farming life in medieval and early modern Ireland.