This enigmatic feature consists of a roughly square area, measuring approximately 20 by 21 metres, surrounded by a notably steep bank and a shallow outer ditch. A 5-metre-wide entrance gap breaks through the northeastern side. The site first appeared on the 1837 Ordnance Survey Fair Plan map as a tree-lined rectangular enclosure, though interestingly, it was never marked as an antiquity on any subsequent OS maps.

The monument’s rectangular shape initially suggests it might be a moated site; a type of medieval fortified farmstead typically dating from the 13th to 14th centuries. However, its cartographic history tells a more ambiguous story. By the time of the 1911 Ordnance Survey 25-inch map, the site was depicted simply as a small, roughly square field, casting doubt on its ancient origins. The sharp, well-defined profile of the enclosing bank points towards a more recent date, possibly representing the remains of a small field boundary constructed after 1700.

Archaeological assessments by Frank Coyne and Caimin O’Brien have noted the site’s uncertain nature. Whilst the basic form could indicate medieval origins, the physical evidence and historical mapping suggest this earthwork may be nothing more exotic than a relatively modern agricultural enclosure. Without excavation, the true age and purpose of this Ballyvade earthwork remains an intriguing puzzle; another reminder that not every mysterious mound or bank in the Irish landscape necessarily reaches back into the distant past.