At the foot of the southern side of Knockaunnagorp Hill in Carrigboy, a roughly circular earthen enclosure sits on the edge of a break in a south-west-facing slope, its outline still firm enough in the pasture to reward a second look. The bank, which runs to an external height of up to four metres on its outer face, drops to just 1.2 metres internally, a ratio that hints at how deliberately these structures were constructed to present a commanding face to the outside world. A gap two metres wide breaks the bank to the east, most likely the original entrance, and a narrower gap to the north-north-west now accommodates a field fence.

Ringforts, known in Irish as raths when they are earthen rather than stone-built, were the most common type of rural settlement in early medieval Ireland, typically dating from roughly the fifth to the twelfth centuries. They served as enclosed farmsteads, protecting a family, their livestock, and their stores within a raised bank and, in many cases, an outer ditch. The Carrigboy example measures approximately 46 metres east to west and 45 metres north to south, placing it comfortably within the typical size range for a single-family enclosure. The bank is highest to the east and north-east, tapering as it sweeps around to the north, south, and west, which may reflect both the natural contours of the hillside and the practical logic of strengthening the side most visible from the approach. A silage pit has been constructed just outside the bank to the north, a reminder that working farmland and ancient monument have shared this ground for a long time.