What makes it quietly unusual is the combination of plainness and decoration in the same stonework: the voussoirs, the wedge-shaped stones that form each arch, are roughly cut, and the pointed breakwaters projecting from the piers are modest and functional, yet the piers themselves carry ornate pilasters, a classical architectural flourish that sits in mild contrast to the rougher masonry around it.

The bridge carries three elliptical arches across the river, with the central arch rising slightly higher than those on either side. Look closely at the piers and you can make out ledges built into the stonework; these are not decorative but structural, serving as temporary supports to hold the arch in place while the mortar cured during construction, a technique common in traditional masonry bridgework. The seven-metre-wide carriageway suggests the bridge was built to carry serious traffic. Just to the east lies the trackbed of the old Donoughmore to Blarney railway line, now disused, a reminder that this stretch of mid Cork was once served by a modest rural railway that has long since closed. The bridge pre-dates or at least runs parallel to that railway era, sitting just west of the line as if the two pieces of infrastructure quietly acknowledged each other across a short stretch of ground.