The feature at Ballyfroota never appeared on historic OSi maps, and it was only through satellite imagery, specifically Digital Globe orthoimages captured between 2011 and 2013 and corresponding Google Earth imagery, that the site was formally recognised as a probable ditch barrow. A barrow, in the broadest sense, is a prehistoric burial mound, often encircled by a fosse, which is a shallow surrounding ditch cut into the earth. The fosse is precisely what gives this one away from the air, defining a raised circular area of approximately 13 metres in diameter in ground that would otherwise read as ordinary improved farmland.

The site sits roughly 10 metres south of a watercourse, a placement that is not unusual for monuments of this type, given that prehistoric communities frequently oriented significant structures in relation to water. Its broader landscape context is notable: two further possible barrows lie nearby, one approximately 135 metres to the east and another around 135 metres to the north-east, suggesting this may be part of a loose cluster of related monuments rather than an isolated curiosity. The site also appears in the archaeological literature under the name Ballyfroota 5, listed as a possible cairn, which is a mound built from stones rather than earth, by Grogan in 1989. The distinction between cairn and barrow has not been fully resolved for this site, which remains classified as a probable rather than confirmed monument. The record was compiled by Martin Fitzpatrick and uploaded in October 2021.

Because the feature was not mapped historically, there are no boundary markers or signage, and the raised area may be difficult to distinguish at ground level, particularly in summer when pasture grass is dense. Low-angle winter light, or a dry spell that brings out subtle changes in vegetation growth over the fosse, gives the best chance of reading the shape from nearby. The surrounding land is reclaimed agricultural ground, so access would require landowner permission. Those with an interest in the satellite evidence can examine the orthoimage data online before visiting, which gives a clearer sense of what to expect than any description from ground level alone.