The site, measuring roughly 15 metres north to south and 10 metres east to west, sits towards the base of a north-facing slope, completely obscured by trees and undergrowth. Despite the absence of visible remains, this location carries the weight of history; it appeared on the 1839 Ordnance Survey six-inch map, marked in gothic lettering as the ruins of a castle, suggesting that some structure was still visible to Victorian cartographers.

This mysterious site might be the ‘castle of Scarke’ referenced in historical descriptions of Ballyanne parish boundaries, as recorded by Simington in 1953. The mention is tantalisingly brief, and frustratingly, no other historical documents seem to reference this fortification. Whether it served as a minor defensive structure, a manor house styled as a castle, or something else entirely remains unknown. The name ‘Scarke’ itself poses questions; was it derived from a family name, a geographical feature, or perhaps an anglicisation of an Irish place name?

The complete disappearance of the castle’s physical remains speaks to the thorough work of time and possibly stone robbing, a common practice where dressed stones from abandoned buildings were repurposed for newer constructions. What might have been a modest tower house or fortified dwelling has been reclaimed entirely by the landscape, leaving only documentary evidence and the faintest hint in parish records to mark its existence. For those interested in Ireland’s lost heritage, this invisible castle serves as a reminder of how many similar sites may have vanished without even these sparse records to remember them by.