Known locally as the Mote or Tumulus at Pembrokestown, this impressive structure rises between 3.8 and 5 metres high, with its flat top measuring 10 metres across. The entire mound spans 22.5 metres at its base, surrounded by a distinctive flat-bottomed ditch, or fosse, that extends the monument’s total footprint to 34 metres from north to south.

The fosse itself is a notable feature; its flat bottom measures 2 to 2.5 metres wide, whilst the top opening spans 6.5 metres across, creating a defensive barrier roughly a metre deep around the central mound. Today, trees and scrub have overtaken the site, giving it an almost forgotten quality despite its substantial size. The stream that helped shape this landscape runs approximately 180 metres to the west, following a south to north course through the valley.

Whether this structure served as a Norman motte, an earlier burial mound, or fulfilled some other purpose remains open to interpretation. The Archaeological Inventory of County Waterford, published in 1999, provides the technical details of this monument, though recent research continues to shed new light on such sites across Ireland. These earthworks represent layers of history; medieval fortifications, prehistoric burial sites, and ceremonial spaces that remind us how each generation has left its mark on the Irish landscape.