Built on a gentle southeast-facing slope, this compact stone structure measures roughly 5.4 metres north to south and 5.7 metres east to west. Its most striking feature is a barrel-vaulted passage running through the building from east to west, which spans 3.2 metres at its widest point before narrowing towards the eastern end.

The gatehouse’s defensive and residential functions are evident in its clever design. A narrow mural staircase, just 60 centimetres wide, is built into the northwest pier and would have been accessed through a stone-lintelled doorway from outside. This cramped stairway leads to the first-floor chamber above the vaulted passage, which served as living quarters. The upper room features large window openings on three sides; the east, south and west walls, providing both light and views of approaching visitors, whilst the north wall remains solid. A fireplace tucked into the southeast corner would have provided warmth, with remnants of a supporting wall extending south from this corner still visible today.

Archaeological evidence suggests this gatehouse wasn’t an isolated structure. Immediately to the north, the foundations of another building can be traced, though this has long since collapsed. These ruins, documented in the Archaeological Inventory of County Meath from 1987 and updated through recent research, offer a glimpse into the medieval landscape of this part of Meath, where religious communities once maintained fortified entrances to protect their estates and control movement through their lands.