Changing Perspectives in Australian Archaeology, part XI. Rare and curious thylacine depictions from Wollemi National Park, New South Wales and Arnhem Land, Northern Territory

Taçon, Paul S.C.; Brennan, Wayne; Lamilami, Ronald

doi:10.3853/j.1835-4211.23.2011.1576

Cited by 9 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 15 publications

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“…The recently discovered northwest Arnhem Land painting measures 91 cm long by 46 cm high, smaller than an actual life-size Thylacoleo, but with a proportionally large head 28 cm long by 11 cm high, again quite unlike that of an actual thylacine and numerous Arnhem Land rock paintings of thylacines (e.g. see Taçon et al 2011). The new painting is larger than that of most thylacine paintings, with a deeper, thicker muzzle and robust jaw; cranial features Thylacoleo-like but unlike those of the thylacine.…”

Section: New Discoveriesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…see Chaloupka 1993;Taçon 1993, 1998;Lewis 1988;Taçon and Brockwell 1995; a good example is in Taçon et al 2011, but see Taçon and Chippindale 2008 for discussion of more recent [mid-Holocene] naturalistic animal paintings). In this regard, new dating results from rock art sites in Sulawesi to Australia's immediate north support the idea that extremely old rock art likely survives in the Greater Australian region.…”

Section: How Should We Interpret These Enigmatic Images?mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Art and megafauna in the Top End of the Northern Territory, Australia: Illusion or reality?

Taçon

Webb²

2017

The Archaeology of Rock Art in Western Arnhem Land, Australia

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Section: New Discoveriesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: How Should We Interpret These Enigmatic Images?mentioning

confidence: 99%

Art and megafauna in the Top End of the Northern Territory, Australia: Illusion or reality?

Taçon

Webb²

2017

The Archaeology of Rock Art in Western Arnhem Land, Australia

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“…In 2011, a total of 77 rock art sites were recorded within the 3.5 km 2 Wulk Lagoon study area, providing a mean density of 33.4 sites per km 2 (Figure 2. 3). In this region, we estimate there are 13,000 rock art motifs painted on approximately 460 sandstone panels.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 98%

Dating painted Panel E1 at Nawarla Gabarnmang, central-western Arnhem Land plateau

David¹,

Delannoy²,

Gunn³

et al. 2021

Preprint

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IntroductionThe southern Arnhem Land plateau contains a rich mosaic of thousands of rock art sites located in outcrops of Proterozoic Marlgowa Sandstone of the Kombolgie formation (Carson et al. 1999) (Figure 11.1). Within this region in Jawoyn Country can be found Nawarla Gabarnmang, an impressive rockshelter exhibiting a gridded network of pillars that supports a thick ceiling of 10 cm to 40 cm thick cross-beds of hard sandstone and quartzite (Figures 11.2 and 11.3; see also Chapter 10). The inter-layer joints and fissures between these compact and poorly soluble quartz-rich sandstones and quartzites have witnessed geologically slow dissolution of the bedrock, resulting in a hollowing out of the rock in a process known as ‘ghost rock’ formation or ‘phantomisation’ (Quinif 2010), a particular cave-forming process causing the regular gridshaped structure of underground cavities and pillars (for details of site formation processes, see Chapter 13).The remnant pillars supporting ceiling rock strata at Nawarla Gabarnmang are an anthropic cave structure (Delannoy et al. 2013; see Chapter 10): in addition to the slow geological dissolution of the rock along layer planes and fissure lines, people have also entirely or partially removed individual pillars, and possibly ceiling strata, over a period commencing sometime after the site was first occupied around 50,000 years ago (e.g. David et al. 2011, completed manuscript). What catches one’s attention at Nawarla Gabarnmang are the voids between the pillars, typically c. 1–2 m apart in the southwestern corner of the site, but more than 8 m apart in the central eastern portion. In that noticeably more open central-eastern area, a large, sub-horizontal and flat ceiling is supported by some 20 sparsely distributed pillars. Here, as in most other parts of the site, the floor of the sheltered area is generally flat and sub-horizontal, consisting of ashy sand with sparsely scattered, relatively small blocks of rock originating from the ceiling but not in their original fallen positions (these blocks have all, without exception, been moved by people). Within the fill across the site are rich archaeological deposits including stone artefacts, ochre pieces and animal bones, as revealed in the archaeological excavations (David et al. 2011; Geneste et al. 2012). What we see today in the shelter are the results of tens of thousands of years of human occupation, modification of rock surfaces and site use that express well the notion of ‘dwelling’ and ‘inhabitation’ (e.g. David et al. 2013, 2014; Delannoy et al. 2013; Geneste et al. 2010; cf. Ingold 2000; Thomas 2008).

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“…In the south‐east, there are only two confirmed images of thylacines: one in Wollemi, New South Wales and another in Red Gorge, South Australia (SA) (Figures 1 and 2 #125 and #124 respectively; Flood 1997; Taçon et al . 2011; Welch 2015). Having said this, Bursill (1993) reports that two charcoal drawings in the greater Royal National Park area that are thylacine‐like, while Tacon et al .…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, based on the youngest directly dated fossils, it is currently believed that thylacines were extinct on the mainland by 3000 years ago, suggesting either: (1) that the black charcoal drawings were made earlier at Mangrove Creek; or (2) thylacines persisted in Wollemi National Park longer than elsewhere in mainland Australia (Taçon et al . 2011). Supporting evidence for the second option is provided by superimposed images, the geology of the region, weathering and association with excavated sites which all indicate that the majority of artwork were made in the last 2000 years (Taçon et al .…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Invisible or ignored: investigating the lack of thylacine‐based material culture in the Australian archaeological record

Knights

Langley

2021

Archaeology in Oceania

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There is a distinct lack of information regarding interactions between thylacine (Thylacinus cynocephalus) and Aboriginal Australians. Their depiction in Australian rock art is not unusual, yet only one example of an artefact made from thylacine remains has been recovered from the archaeological record. This absence of thylacine-based Indigenous material culture is conspicuous, especially since the raw materials such a large mammal provides would be useful and thus their depiction in art but absence from "things" appears significant. To investigate whether substantial opportunity existed for the exploitation of thylacines for the purpose of material culture production, and thus that sampling or cultural factors must instead be at play for their absence from the record, the location of known palaeontological, archaeological and rock art sites related to thylacines were mapped in time and space. Dated contexts are compared to create an overall picture of the overlap between thylacine habitat and human territories. We found that there was a significant period where interaction between this enigmatic animal and First Australians occurred, and, therefore, a lack of contact is not the reason for the near total absence of thylacine bones, teeth and other materials being missing from Indigenous material culture

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Changing Perspectives in Australian Archaeology, part XI. Rare and curious thylacine depictions from Wollemi National Park, New South Wales and Arnhem Land, Northern Territory

Cited by 9 publications

References 15 publications

Art and megafauna in the Top End of the Northern Territory, Australia: Illusion or reality?

Art and megafauna in the Top End of the Northern Territory, Australia: Illusion or reality?

Dating painted Panel E1 at Nawarla Gabarnmang, central-western Arnhem Land plateau

Invisible or ignored: investigating the lack of thylacine‐based material culture in the Australian archaeological record

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