The archaeology of Maliwawa: 25,000 years of occupation in the Wellington Range, Arnhem Land

Wesley, Daryl; Litster, Mirani; O'Connor, Susan; Grono, Elle; Theys, Jeff; Higgins, Andrew; Jones, T. Llechid; May, Sally K.; Taçon, Paul S.C.

doi:10.1080/03122417.2018.1521237

Cited by 10 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 42 publications

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“…There is no right or wrong answer here, Kapirigi's responses are clearly embedded in a complex relational sphere, one that is most likely context-and time-dependent. Mitchell 1994;Wesley and Litster 2015;Wesley et al 2018aWesley et al , 2018bWesley et al 2016;Taçon et al 2010). The area's highly visible, diverse, and extensive rock art galleries were also noted by Chaloupka (1993) during his visits to the area in the 1970s.…”

mentioning

confidence: 86%

What painting? Encountering and interpreting the archaeological record in western Arnhem Land, northern Australia

Brady

May

Goldhahn

et al. 2020

Archaeology in Oceania

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Research into contemporary Indigenous relationships with the archaeological record have increasingly drawn upon frameworks emphasising relational, affectual and cultural understandings to learn about the complex ways that meaning and symbolism are negotiated and expressed. In this paper, we use a series of case studies from Arnhem Land to investigate the network of relationships Aboriginal Traditional Owners use in the process of interpreting the archaeological record. At the core of this process is Edward Casey's idea of 'grasping-together', where people draw on their social and cultural knowledge as a means to make sense out of what is being encountered and how it fits into existing frameworks of knowledge and understanding. By approaching rock art through the lens of encounter and interaction, archaeologists are in a privileged position to add another layer to story, symbolism and significance people attach to their cultural heritage today.

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mentioning

confidence: 86%

What painting? Encountering and interpreting the archaeological record in western Arnhem Land, northern Australia

Brady

May

Goldhahn

et al. 2020

Archaeology in Oceania

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“…Since 2008 we have been part of teams investigating contact rock art in the Wellington Range area (e.g. Brady et al 2020;Taçon et al 2012;Wesley et al 2018). Our study area covers over 100 square kilometres and is known to have been occupied for over 30,000 years (Wesley et al 2018).…”

Section: The Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Brady et al 2020;Taçon et al 2012;Wesley et al 2018). Our study area covers over 100 square kilometres and is known to have been occupied for over 30,000 years (Wesley et al 2018). The Wellington Range is home to a number of different Aboriginal clan groups, including the Maung who are the Traditional Owners of the Namunidjbuk clan estate where the sites discussed are located (Figures 1 and 2).…”

Section: The Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…These visitors are also known to have interacted and traded with local Aboriginal groups for goods such as iron wood, beeswax, and pearl shells (e.g. Clark and May 2013;Macknight 1969Macknight , 1976Macknight , 1986Macknight , 2013Theden-Ringl et al 2011;Wesley et al 2014Wesley et al , 2018. They made these annual journeys in vessels known as prau with their characteristic tripod mast and deck structures (Figure 3).…”

Section: The Macassansmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The missing Macassans: Indigenous sovereignty, rock art and the archaeology of absence

May

Wesley

Goldhahn

et al. 2021

Australian Archaeology

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The contact period rock art of northern Australia provides unprecedented insights into Aboriginal cross-cultural experiences during the last few hundred years. Northwest Arnhem Land, Australia, has an extensive rock art assemblage and a complicated history of interactions between Aboriginal communities and island South East Asians (Macassans), colonists, explorers, missionaries, buffalo shooters, and more. This contact period rock art offers a unique opportunity to explore a variety of questions relating to cross-cultural interactions and artistic responses to new people, objects and ideas. In this paper we argue that a dichotomy exists in the number of European and south-east Asian themed rock art motifs. We suggest that there is an underlying theme in the proliferation of European related imagery relating to threats to Indigenous sovereignty. Our findings suggest that rock art illustrates the Aboriginal community's responses to both groups and their experience of the existential threat posed by European intruders. The apparent lack of rock art relating to south-east Asian interactions, although perplexing, may in fact provide circumstantial evidence for a very different type of interaction between some northern Australian and southeast Asian communities.

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“…The regional character of archaeological material culture from the Northern Territory has a significant bearing on the search for submerged sites. Caves and overhangs have been attractive targets for submerged site prospection in Australia (Dortch 2002;Nutley et al 2016) and these features are strongly associated with archaeological activity in the Northern Territory (Clarkson et al 2017;Shine et al 2015;Wesley et al 2018). Such features occur in bedrock outcrops, which are common in the terrestrial part of the Northern Territory but appear to be relatively rare offshore, although some may not be visible due to low quality bathymetric coverage.…”

Section: Genetic Linguistic and Archaeological Evidence And Modellingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Beneath the Top End: A regional assessment of submerged archaeological potential in the Northern Territory, Australia

McCarthy

Wiseman

Woo

et al. 2021

Australian Archaeology

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Regional-scale assessments have proven to be invaluable frameworks for research, public engagement and management of submerged archaeological landscapes. Regional-scale approaches have been implemented internationally through a variety of academic or strategic studies. Such studies represent a much-needed next step towards sub-regional and site-level prospection to support management, engagement and mitigation of the impacts of offshore development. However, these regional studies are largely absent in Australia. In this article, we build on the recent discovery of submerged archaeological sites in Western Australia and produce a novel regional-scale assessment of submerged archaeological and cultural landscape potential in the coastal and island regions of the Northern Territory. This area is of special significance in the peopling of Australia, containing some of the oldest dated archaeological evidence. We collate and synthesise regional data related to sealevel change, ethnography (e.g. oral traditions), geomorphology, and archaeology, also taking account of logistics and existing data availability to identify prospective areas for further study. We highlight the need for a coordinated national program of regional baseline studies to address a legacy of under-representation of submerged landscapes and provide vital baseline data for a wide spectrum of stakeholders, including researchers, policy makers, environmental and heritage managers, developers and Traditional Owners.

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The archaeology of Maliwawa: 25,000 years of occupation in the Wellington Range, Arnhem Land

Cited by 10 publications

References 42 publications

What painting? Encountering and interpreting the archaeological record in western Arnhem Land, northern Australia

What painting? Encountering and interpreting the archaeological record in western Arnhem Land, northern Australia

The missing Macassans: Indigenous sovereignty, rock art and the archaeology of absence

Beneath the Top End: A regional assessment of submerged archaeological potential in the Northern Territory, Australia

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