The pits themselves are modest, averaging around 0.7 metres by 0.6 metres, but their contents, fragments of cremated bone, and their association with what appear to be the remnants of funeral pyres, suggest this corner of the Irish midlands was once a site of organised ritual activity rather than casual domestic use.

The site came to light during Phase 2 excavations led by John Tierney of Eachtra Archaeological Projects, carried out as part of the N7 Castletown to Nenagh national road scheme. The area, designated Cullenwaine 1, had first been tested in 2007 under an earlier licence, but the fuller picture emerged during subsequent investigation of a 17.1-kilometre section of the route commissioned by Laois County Council and the National Roads Authority. What the excavation uncovered was not simply a burial spot but a dense concentration of prehistoric activity: ten troughs, two hearths, eleven stake-holes, spreads of burnt-mound material, two ditches running north-east to south-west, and the four cremation pits grouped in the north-west corner of the site. Burnt mounds, for those unfamiliar with the term, are accumulations of fire-cracked stone and charcoal-rich soil, typically associated with Bronze Age activity involving the heating of water or the processing of food and other materials. The cremation pits sat to the south of a cluster of six troughs, with possible pyre sites nearby, suggesting the north-west corner of Cullenwaine 1 served a function distinct from the rest of the spread. Notably, none of the troughs showed any evidence of timber lining, leaving their precise purpose open to interpretation.