This medieval earthwork takes the form of a nearly perfect square, measuring 42 metres north to south and 44 metres east to west. The site’s defensive features include a substantial earth and stone bank, ranging from two to three metres wide, which rises about half a metre on the inner side and a full metre on the outer face. Beyond this bank lies a flat-bottomed ditch, or fosse, that’s four metres wide and half a metre deep, with what appears to be an original entrance gap on the eastern side.

The construction shows sophisticated medieval building techniques, with clear evidence of both external and internal stone facing on the banks. At the western section, wall footings actually protrude from the top of the bank itself, suggesting more substantial structures once stood here. Perhaps most intriguingly, the foundations of what was likely a rectangular building can be traced against the inner face of the eastern bank; these remains measure approximately nine metres east to west and twelve metres north to south.

Sites like this one at Lahardan Lower were typically built by Anglo-Norman settlers or Gaelicised lords during the medieval period, serving as fortified homesteads that combined defensive capabilities with agricultural management. The moat and banks would have provided security whilst also demonstrating the status of the inhabitants, and the elevated position would have allowed residents to monitor their lands and any approaching visitors or threats.