It was identified only through a physical inspection carried out on the ground in December 2005. The structure is a cist, which in archaeological terms refers to a small stone-lined box or pit, typically constructed to hold a single burial, often from the Bronze Age. That something so old and so deliberately made should have slipped through the cartographic record entirely, and continue to evade detection from above, gives this particular corner of Lough Gur its peculiar character.

The identification was made by Matt Kelleher of the Archaeological Survey of Ireland, and the monument was subsequently compiled into the national record by Alison McQueen and Vera Rahilly, uploaded in November 2020. What makes the setting especially layered is that this cist does not stand alone. It sits within an unusually dense cluster of prehistoric remains, including a second cist immediately to the northeast, an enclosure, a standing stone, multiple prehistoric house sites, and the site known as Seeaghanmnatee. Knockadoon itself, the elevated peninsula that overlooks both Lough Gur and Garret Island to the west, has long been understood as one of the most archaeologically significant landscapes in Ireland, with evidence of continuous occupation stretching back thousands of years. Back Hill forms part of that broader terrain, at an elevation of around 136 metres above sea level.

Lough Gur is accessible from the village of Bruff via the R516, and the area around Knockadoon is generally open to visitors, with some sites managed and interpreted along well-worn paths. Back Hill and its monuments are in rougher, rockier ground, and the cist itself is not marked or signposted. Given that it does not register clearly even on satellite imagery, anyone hoping to locate it would be doing so largely on foot, with an OS map and a degree of patience. The surrounding complex of house sites and standing stones provides more immediately legible archaeology to read while moving through the landscape. Autumn and winter, when vegetation dies back, tend to make subtle earthworks and stone features more discernible across this type of rocky ground.