The Civil Survey of 1654-6 recorded that ‘a castle in good repayre’ stood on these lands, suggesting the structure was still intact in the mid-17th century. Today, however, only fragments remain of this once formidable stronghold, offering tantalising glimpses into its former glory.

When the Ordnance Survey team visited the site in 1840, they found just a small portion of stone wall surviving on the hilltop summit. Their detailed measurements paint a picture of the ruins: a twelve-foot section of wall running east to west, varying in height from one to four and a half feet along its damaged southern face. The wall enclosed what appeared to be an oblong excavation or hollow, approximately fourteen feet by eight feet, sunk about seven feet below ground level. Whether this depression represented the castle’s original footprint or merely a single chamber remains unclear; an ash tree had already taken root within the space by 1840, its spreading branches obscuring much of the interior whilst briars and nettles colonised the northern end.

The construction quality suggests this was once a substantial and well-built structure. The surviving masonry shows careful workmanship using locally quarried stone, likely from a quarry at the northeast extremity of the hill, bound together with lime and sand mortar with grouting. Intriguingly, another clump of similar masonry lies near the eastern base of the hill; the Victorian surveyors speculated this might have tumbled down from the summit ruins or perhaps belonged to a defensive wall that once ran up the hillside to connect with the castle above. Unfortunately, the site’s current location within impenetrable forestry makes modern archaeological assessment challenging, leaving many questions about Seefin Castle’s original form and function unanswered.