This nearly perfect square earthwork, measuring 27 metres east to west and 26 metres north to south, represents a type of fortified homestead that once dotted the Irish landscape during the Anglo-Norman period. The site consists of a sophisticated defensive system with two concentric banks and two ditches, or fosses as they’re known in archaeological terms, though time has taken its toll on some sections; the outer bank has vanished along the northern edge, whilst the outer fosse remains visible only on the eastern and southern sides.

What makes this particular site intriguing is a deep channel on its western side, which archaeologists believe may mark the location of an ancient leat, a type of artificial watercourse. This channel connects the outer defensive ditch directly to the nearby stream, suggesting the medieval inhabitants had engineered a water management system that likely served both defensive and practical purposes. Such moated sites typically date from the 13th to 14th centuries and were built by Anglo-Norman settlers or Gaelicised Norman families as fortified farmsteads, offering protection whilst allowing them to oversee agricultural lands.

The site was formally documented in the Archaeological Inventory of County Galway Volume II, compiled by Olive Alcock, Kathy de hÓra and Paul Gosling in 1999. These moated homesteads provide valuable insights into medieval settlement patterns in Ireland, revealing how communities balanced the need for defence with agricultural productivity during a turbulent period of Irish history.