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Kakadu rock art

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TLF-Resource R6797

Department of Environment and Heritage http://www.deh.gov.au

This is a colour photograph of Indigenous rock art in the Kakadu National Park in the Northern Territory. At the top are representations of three Creation Ancestors known as Namondjok, Namarrgon and Barrginj. Below them is a group of men and women, decorated with stripes. The images depicted can all be clearly seen in some detail.

  • This photograph shows an example of Indigenous rock art in the Kakadu National Park in the Northern Territory. The Park contains one of the largest concentrations of rock art in the world, with an estimated 15,000 separate art sites. Some sites are large and have multiple layers of paint.
  • Rock art has been an important part of the lives of Aboriginal people. For example, it can serve as a visual record of aspects of particular ceremonies or stories about Creation Ancestors. Some has also been painted in the belief that it would influence the outcome of certain events, such as hunting expeditions. Non-Aboriginal people are not entitled to know the full explanations behind certain images.
  • Rock art is one of the reasons why the Kakadu National Park has been listed for its cultural significance to all humankind on the World Heritage list of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation. The Park is one of the few sites in the world listed for outstanding cultural and natural values.
  • This rock art is in the Nourlangie Rock area, in the central east of the National Park. The actual site is known as the Lightning Man site or the Anbangbang gallery. Aboriginal people believe the area was formed by two Creation Ancestors in the form of short-eared rock wallabies. Wallabies are commonly found in the area.
  • This art was painted in 1963 or 1964 by Nayambolmi or Najombolmi (about 1895-1967). Also known as 'Barramundi Charlie', Nayambolmi was a highly respected rock artist. In this case, he followed the common practice of repainting figures that had already been at the site.
  • Although some Kakadu rock art has been completed relatively recently, it is generally difficult to date. Some is estimated to be about 20,000 years old, although archaeologists believe they have dated ground ochre in the Park to about 50,000 years ago. Ochre, a type of clay, is one of the main natural materials used in Kakadu rock art, along with haematite, limonite, goethite, kaolin, huntite and manganese oxide.
  • The large figure at the top left-hand side of this photograph is a Creation Ancestor known as Namondjok (pronounced nar-mon-jok). Aboriginal people have different stories about Namondjok. Some believe he now lives in the sky and can be seen as a dark spot in the Milky Way. Others believe he was an ancestor who broke kinship laws that dictate who Aboriginal people can and cannot marry.
  • The figure at the top right-hand side of the photograph is another Creation Ancestor known as Namarrgon (pronounced narm-arr-gon), also known as the Lightning Man. The band around him, connecting his feet and his head, represents the lightning for which he is believed to be responsible during the violent storms that occur during the wet season, from about October to March. Namarrgon is thought to cause lightning and thunder by splitting the clouds with axes connected to his head and body.
  • In the middle left of the photograph, under Namondjok, is Namarrgon's wife, Barrginj (pronounced barr-jeen). The children of the couple are Alyurr, the vibrant blue and orange insects commonly known as Leichhardt's Grasshoppers ('Petasida ephippigera'). During the Creation Time, the Alyurr are believed to have given the local people their language, their beliefs and the structure of their society.
  • At the bottom of the photograph is a group of men and women. They are decorated with stripes, suggesting that they could be participating in a ceremony.

  • Aboriginal art
  • Creation
  • Rock paintings

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  • Reproduced courtesy of Director of National Parks

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Author

  • Nayambolmi
  • artist

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© Curriculum Corporation, 2008, except where indicated under Acknowledgements.
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The Le@rning Federation is a project of Curriculum Corporation on behalf of the Australian, Australian Capital Territory, Northern Territory, Queensland, South Australian, Tasmanian, Victorian and Western Australian governments. Copyright.