This grass-covered structure, with its base measuring approximately 22 metres in diameter and its summit spanning 15 metres north to south and 13 metres east to west, has been crowned with mature deciduous trees that have grown over the centuries. Around its northwestern to northeastern perimeter, you can still make out the faint traces of what was once a defensive fosse, or ditch, measuring between 4.5 and 5.5 metres wide, though time has reduced its depth to a mere 10 centimetres.

This mound forms part of a fascinating cluster of historical sites along this stretch of Lough Arrow’s shoreline. About 125 metres out into the lake to the northwest lies a crannog, one of those artificial island dwellings that were once common throughout Ireland’s lakes and which served as easily defensible homesteads from the early medieval period onwards. A similar distance to the north-northeast along the shore, you’ll find the remains of a fortified house, creating a trio of defensive structures that speak to centuries of strategic occupation of this lakeside location.

The proximity of these three sites; the earthen mound, the crannog, and the fortified house; suggests this area held considerable importance over multiple historical periods. Whether the mound served as a motte for an early Norman fortification, a prehistoric ceremonial site, or had some other defensive or ritual purpose remains part of its mystery, though its commanding position overlooking the lake and its careful construction certainly point to its significance in the local landscape.