The arched recess at the base, roughly three metres high and just over two metres wide, is the most immediately legible part of what was once a working industrial structure. Behind it, sloping slabs line the rear, and the remains of a stone-lined funnel and a loading ramp are still discernible beneath the overgrowth.

Lime kilns were once a commonplace feature of the Irish rural landscape, used to burn limestone at high temperatures to produce quicklime, which farmers spread on acidic soils to improve fertility. The process required a continuous supply of fuel and stone fed from above, which is why kilns were typically built into slopes; the ramp at the rear of this example allowed carts or labourers to reach the top of the structure and load material down into the funnel. The arched recess at the front, known as the draw hole, was where the finished lime was raked out once burning was complete. This particular kiln, recorded as part of the archaeological inventory of east and south Cork, follows that standard functional logic closely, its siting and layout entirely shaped by the demands of the process it once served.