What makes it worth a second look is not simply its survival but the small engineering decision visible in its layout: the interior has been deliberately raised on the northern side to level out the natural hillslope, a practical adjustment that speaks to the care taken by whoever built it.

The site is a rath, the most common type of early medieval settlement in Ireland, typically consisting of a circular area enclosed by one or more earthen banks with an outer ditch, known as a fosse, designed to define a farmstead and keep livestock secure. At Lisselane, that fosse is still traceable along the western to northern arc, dropping to around 0.9 metres in depth. There may also be a second and third low bank running from the south around to the west, though heavy vegetation now obscures much of the detail. The enclosure measures 36 metres across in both directions, placing it firmly within the normal range for a single-family settlement of the early Christian period. More unusual is the souterrain recorded at its centre, an underground stone-lined passage or chamber, features commonly associated with ringforts and thought to have served for storage, refuge, or both. The combination of a well-preserved main bank, a traceable fosse, possible additional enclosures, and a subterranean chamber makes this a relatively complete example of its type.