What appears at first glance to be a typical Norman motte and bailey actually conceals a much older secret; this defensive earthwork was constructed atop an ancient henge monument, transforming a sacred Bronze Age site into a medieval stronghold.

The motte itself is a flat-topped mound measuring roughly 13 metres across and rising 3 to 3.5 metres high, encircled by a broad, shallow ditch. The adjoining bailey, an enclosed courtyard that once housed buildings and livestock, stretches approximately 50 metres north to south and 75 metres east to west. This substantial enclosure is defined by an earthen bank, 8 to 9 metres wide and standing up to 3 metres high on its outer face, with an external ditch running around most of its perimeter, save for the northern side. The main entrance faces east, typical of Norman defensive planning.

What makes this site particularly fascinating is the evidence of its earlier incarnation. At the centre of what became the bailey stands a prehistoric standing stone, a remnant of the original henge monument that occupied this spot thousands of years before any Norman knight set foot in Ireland. The strategic reuse of this ancient ceremonial site speaks to the enduring importance of certain places in the landscape; locations that held power and meaning across millennia and cultures. Historical records, including a reference in O’Hanlon and O’Leary’s work from 1907, note the presence of a mound at Skirke, confirming the site’s long-recognised significance in local memory.