Lime kilns of this type were once a common feature of the Irish agricultural landscape, used to burn limestone at high temperatures to produce quicklime, which farmers then spread on acidic soils to improve fertility. Most have crumbled back into the ground or been robbed for building stone, which makes the relative completeness of this structure's front elevation worth noting.

The kiln is built into the slope in the usual manner, allowing fuel and limestone to be loaded from above into the funnel, which measures around two metres in diameter and narrows towards the base where the burned lime was raked out. The arched recess at the front, standing roughly two metres high and just over two metres wide, would have sheltered the draw hole used by workers during the burning process. The rear of the structure has collapsed, which is typical of kilns that have gone out of use and lost the earthen support of their setting over time. The dimensions recorded here suggest a kiln built for serious output rather than occasional domestic use, pointing to agricultural activity on a reasonable scale in this part of east Cork.