Ancient art and modern Australians: evidence for continuity in an Aboriginal knowledge system

Abstract

Two absolute dating methods have been used in south-central Cape York Peninsula to date pre-Historic rock art –dating of rock art materials by association with stratified deposits and AMS 14C dating of rock surface accretions. A body of published research indicates a long sequence of Aboriginal rock art and the occasional survival of late Pleistocene art in rock shelters. This paper 1) outlines the contexts of, and evidence for, enduring art practice in the region from the late Pleistocene to the modern period and 2) discusses some of the general features and implications of the data. Contrary to reports of cultural distance between purportedly "old" rock art and modern Aboriginal people, research in the Laura region points to the ongoing relevance of ancient art.

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