In July 1969, a Cambridge University aerial survey captured distinctive cropmarks in the fields surrounding a medieval tower house, revealing what appears to be the remains of a bawn; a fortified courtyard that once protected the tower and its inhabitants. The marks, visible as darker lines in the growing crops, trace the northern and eastern sides of this lost enclosure, stretching approximately 70 metres in length.

The tower house itself, designated KK020-060001 in archaeological records, sits on flat ground with a road running northeast to southwest along its western side. The cropmarks appear roughly 55 metres north and 50 metres east of the tower, suggesting the bawn once formed a substantial protective perimeter around the medieval structure. Interestingly, the marks don’t continue into the fields west of the road or south of a field boundary, likely because different crops or agricultural practices in those areas didn’t create the same conditions for the archaeological features to show through.

These cropmarks offer a fascinating glimpse into medieval defensive architecture in Kilkenny. Bawns were essential features of tower houses from the 15th to 17th centuries, providing secure enclosures where cattle could be protected from raiders and where the tower’s residents could retreat during times of conflict. While the physical walls have long since vanished, probably robbed for building stone over the centuries, their foundations continue to affect soil moisture and crop growth, making them visible from the air under the right conditions. Modern satellite imagery from 2018 confirms the feature’s location, though the marks are most dramatic in the 1969 photograph when conditions were apparently ideal for their detection.