The site consists of a small flat-topped mound, or motte, rising three metres high with a base diameter of roughly 15 to 17 metres. This earthwork is accompanied by a rectangular bailey area extending to the north, east and south, defined by a well-preserved earth and stone bank that still stands about half a metre in height. The western side of the monument is naturally defended by a rocky scarp, making clever use of the landscape’s natural features. Two nearby ringforts, located 150 metres to the east and south respectively, suggest this area held strategic importance for centuries.

Historical records provide tantalising glimpses into the castle’s past. The Civil Survey of 1654-6 describes it as “a small old Castle & five or six cottages”, with the property listed under Walter Sall, an Irish Catholic landowner, in 1640. Local tradition attributes the castle’s construction to the Mac Carthys, one of medieval Ireland’s most powerful Gaelic families. When the Ordnance Survey visited in 1840, they recorded substantial stone walls still standing; a northern wall and eastern wall each measuring about three metres in length and soaring nine metres high, with walls over two metres thick. These may have been the remnants of the bailey’s enclosing walls, of which only the foundations remain today, showing evidence of external stone facing along the eastern side.

Within the bailey, two rectangular depressions might mark the locations of sunken house sites, measuring approximately 6 by 7.5 metres and 5 by 11 metres respectively. However, the presence of natural rock outcrop suggests these could equally be the result of stone quarrying. Small stones protruding from the top of the motte hint at possible structures that once crowned this defensive earthwork. The entire bailey area likely measured about 65 by 44 metres, with the motte positioned strategically in the northwest quadrant, set back from the defensive perimeter to provide maximum protection whilst maintaining commanding views across the surrounding upland region.