This circular earthwork, measuring approximately 36 metres in internal diameter, consists of three defensive elements: an inner earthen bank, a fosse (defensive ditch), and an outer bank. Whilst time and agricultural activity have claimed much of the southwest quadrant, the remaining portions reveal the considerable effort invested in its construction, with the eastern section of the inner bank still rising to an impressive two metres in height.

The fosse, which separates the inner and outer banks, presents particularly interesting construction details. Measuring up to three metres wide and descending about a metre below the current ground surface, portions of this defensive ditch appear to have been carved directly from the bedrock, suggesting the builders adapted their techniques to the local geology. The outer bank, though more modest at 0.6 metres where it survives, wasn’t deemed necessary along the southern perimeter, where natural rock outcrops provided ready-made defences. A carefully planned entrance faces northeast, where a 2.25-metre gap in the inner bank connects to a causeway across the fosse and continues through an eight-metre opening in the outer bank.

Today, the grass-covered interior slopes gently upward from north to south, sitting amongst light-soiled grazing land punctuated by several ridges of exposed rock. This ringfort, like many of Ireland’s estimated 45,000 examples, likely served as a defended farmstead during the early medieval period (roughly 500-1200 AD), housing an extended family and their livestock within its protective banks. Its strategic position above Sheephaven Bay would have provided both security and commanding views across the surrounding landscape, whilst the nearby rocky outcrops that influenced its construction remain visible reminders of how these ancient builders worked with, rather than against, their environment.