It is, in fact, the remains of a fulacht fia, a type of prehistoric cooking or processing site found in great numbers across Ireland, typically dating from the Bronze Age. The mound measures around twenty-two and a half metres north to south and twenty metres east to west, rising to just under half a metre at its highest point, and it is composed of burnt material, the characteristic dark, heat-shattered stone that accumulates when rocks are repeatedly heated and plunged into water-filled troughs to bring liquid to the boil.

The proximity to the stream is no accident. Fulachtaí fia, as they are known collectively, are almost always found close to a reliable water source, since the process depended on a ready supply. The burnt and cracked stone, discarded after each use, gradually built up into the horseshoe or oval mounds that survive across the Irish landscape today. What makes this particular site a little more interesting is that it does not stand alone. A second fulacht fia lies approximately two hundred metres to the south, suggesting that this stretch of North Cork was a place of some sustained activity during prehistory, with communities returning to the same general area over time, or perhaps using both sites simultaneously for different purposes.