This ancient structure, annotated as ‘Rathbaun’ on the 1840 Ordnance Survey map, represents one of Ireland’s many ringforts; earthen enclosures that once served as defended farmsteads during the early medieval period. The monument remains clearly visible today, appearing as a rectangular, tree-covered earthwork in aerial photography from as recently as 2018.

Archaeological surveys conducted in 2008 revealed the monument’s impressive dimensions and preservation. The roughly square enclosure measures 38 metres from northeast to southwest and 33 metres from northwest to southeast, bounded by a substantial earthen bank that rises to 1.45 metres on its exterior face and spans 3.6 metres in width. The defensive bank is best preserved along the northwest and northeast sides, where it’s accompanied by an external fosse, or ditch, that adds another 4.35 metres to the overall width of the fortification. Though the fosse has been filled in along the southeast and southwest sections, it still reaches depths of half a metre where intact.

The ringfort shows signs of both ancient design and modern agricultural use. A possible original entrance gap, measuring 4 metres wide, can be identified on the west-southwest side, whilst more recent livestock gaps have been cut through the northwest and northeast sections, where the bank has been reduced to a simple scarp. These practical modifications reflect the monument’s continued integration into the working landscape of rural Limerick, where medieval fortifications often share space with grazing cattle and sheep. Historical references to the site date back to at least 1959, with scholars O’Dwyer and Barry documenting its presence in their surveys of Irish archaeological sites.