Australian Rock Art
Rock art is one of the oldest art forms. It is estimated that there are about 100,000 significant rock art locations around the content of Australia. While all of the art cannot be specifically dated, the tools used to carve some of these art forms have been dated to 50,000 years ago. The first Humans to settle in Australia landed there approximately 65,000 years ago, and it is very possible that the oldest rock carvings date back to then. Note: these art forms are not named and all dates are estimated.
Quinkan Country (location)
This art peice focusees on dingoes, humans, and what are presumed to be eels. I like this drawing because of how much it reflects Australian wildlife. Dingoes are widely known from their Australian heritage, and there are over fifteen different types of eels that reside on or around the continent. What also struck out to me was the contrast. The humans depicted are done with a darker ink, and the dingoes and eels are done with a lighter ink. Dingoes are usually a beighy gold color and it sparks the question if they used to be more white in color, or if the abboriginal people did not have access to that color of ink.
Up to 20,000 years old
I found this etching in rock very interesting because of the animal depicted, a Tasmanian Tiger. These marsupials have been declared extinct since 1936. It is sad to think about how less than a hundred years ago, these animals were wild and free, and now, no longer exist. That is what makes this peice so meaningful, because it depicts a past time that no longer exists. This etching is very simple, but when you think about how old it is, and the size, it still very impressive that it is still around today. I also thought that the fact that this carving is on an Australian surrounding island is really neat.
Date unknown
Less than 25km from Sydney
This echidna carving has 12 lines, representing quills, from the head to the tail. I honestly chose this carving because of how funny they look, and to see a carving, thousands of years old, depicting these is amazing. The carving is 90cm long (35 inches) which is relatively short compared to other close carvings. Some of the fish and shark carvings in the surrounding area reach lengths of almost 2 meters long! I also think that this is truly a masterpeice. The way this would have been done was by drilling holes, and then carving the area between the holes out, to become carved lines. If I was going to carve an animal in rock it certainly would not look this good. While this peice may look bleak and mundane, it is important to realize how old it is and the people who would have carved it. It is possible that this peice could be more thank 20,000 years old, and the fact that it stood the test of time is quite a feat. That feat is the reason that millenia later, we still have carvings like these, fully understandable, but as historical art.
Sources:
“Australia's Top 7 Aboriginal Rock Art Sites.” Australian Geographic, 17 Aug. 2018, www.australiangeographic.com.au/topics/history-culture/2016/03/top-7-aboriginal-rock-art-sites/.
I love seeing ancient art like this. Viewing art like this rock art is a fantastic window to look into the minds of our ancestors and how they saw shapes and portrayed anatomy. It's super interesting to see the simple shapes and lines used to portray animals and complex scenes.
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