This rectangular earthwork measures approximately 24.7 metres from east to west and 24.2 metres from north to south, enclosed by a low earthen bank that rises just 20 centimetres above the surrounding ground. Running around the outside of this bank is a shallow fosse, or defensive ditch, about 15 centimetres deep.

These moated sites were once common features of the Irish medieval landscape, particularly in areas settled by Anglo-Norman colonists from the 12th century onwards. They typically surrounded timber-framed manor houses or farm buildings, with the water-filled moat serving both as defence against raids and as a status symbol for the landowner. The modest dimensions of the Rathdrought example suggest it may have belonged to a lesser lord or prosperous farmer rather than a major magnate.

Today, what remains is subtle but significant; a grass-covered geometric earthwork that marks where a medieval homestead once stood. The site’s position on the slope would have provided good drainage for the moat whilst offering commanding views over the river valley below, practical considerations that would have been important to its medieval inhabitants. Though the buildings have long since vanished and the moat has dried up, the earthworks continue to mark this spot as a place where people once lived, worked, and defended their small corner of medieval Cork.