Its European name was given when, after sailing around Groote Eylandt between 5 and 14 January 1803, Matthew Flinders and his accompanying scientific party landed on the small island to take bearings and found that deep chasms in the cliffs made it difficult to reach the top.[2]
The island is significant for the millennia-old rock art found there that include paintings and engravings observed and recorded by Flinders; the first documented by Europeans.
Access to the island by tourists and other visitors is strictly limited and permissions are controlled by the Anindilyakwa Land Council.[3]
Geography and geology
Chasm Island covers 3.2 square kilometres and the topography is flat but rugged, with frequently enocdunterd deep crevices and fissures in the sandstone running roughly WSW to ENE crossed by others in a North-South orientation. The highest point of the island is 79 meters above sea level. It covers 1.9km from north to south and 3.0km from east to west.[4]
Matthew Flinders observed its "close-grained sand stone [...] we found also coral, iron-stone, and quartz. In many places, quartz in almost a crystallised state was sprinkled in grains through the sand stone, and in others, the sand stone itself was partly vitrified."
The island is within the McArthur Basin formed during widespread extension and thermal subsidence, and was subsequently deformed during thrust tectonics events affecting the North Australian Craton during the Proterozoic.[5]
Flora
The island vegetation is woodland and heath.[6] Flinders discovered "a fruit which proved to be a new species of eugenia, of the size of an apple, whose acidity of taste was agreeable; there were also many large bushes covered with nutmegs, similar to those seen at Cape Vanderlin; and in some of the chasms the ground was covered with this fruit, without our being able, for some time, to know whence it came. Several trees shot up in these chasms, thirty or forty feet high, and on considering them attentively, these were found to be the trees whence the nutmegs had fallen; thus what was a spreading bush above, became, from the necessity of air and light, a tall, slender tree, and showed the admirable power in nature to accommodate itself to local circumstances. The fruit was small, and not of an agreeable flavour; nor is it probable that it can at all come in competition with the nutmeg of the Molucca Islands: it is the Myristica insipida of Brown's Prodrom. Nov. Holl, p. 400."[7]
Climate
The savanna climate average temperature is 25°C. The warmest month is November, at 29°C, and the coldest is July, at 22°C. The average rainfall is 1,184 millimetres per year. The wettest month is March, with 332 millimeters of rain, and the driest is July, with 3 millimetres.
Population
Less than 2 people per square kilometre.
Culture
The accepted names for the Traditional Owners of the Groote archipelago are the Anindilyakwa people or Warnumamalya ('True People' in the Anindilyakwa language). Their traditional religious beliefs resemble those found in other parts of Arnhem Land. According to their belief system, the clans and their territories were established and sanctified during the Dreaming period (amutiyurrariya). This era of creation led to a spiritual essence known as mardayan, which still resonates today. Ancestral entities traversed the land and oceans during this creative time, shaping natural features, altering the seascape, and imbuing them with spiritual significance. This spirituality is also thought to reside within specific ritual objects, artwork, designs, songs, and certain locations in the landscape and sea. The people maintain a sense of connection to the natural world, emphasizing the relationships between humans and ancestral beings, many of which are now believed to be sea creatures. The pathways followed by these creator beings extend across the sea, leaving their mark either in the ocean itself, on the seabed, or within the formations of rocks and islands that emerge from it. Ancestral beings delineated clan estates, and one, Barabara, includes Chasm Island, an area of great importance both for this clan and for all other people living on Groote Eylandt.[8]
In their mythology, as related to Charles Mountford in 1948, the creation of the archipelago of the Gulf, including Chasm Island, was the work of a shark ancestor.[8] They relate how the geography of the small islands; their rocky formations, steep cliffs, and submerged rocks, were shaped in ancient times by three mythical beings: the Baler-shells known as Yukana, the dolphins called Amatuana, and the tiger-sharkBangudja.[9] A family from the Baler-shell tribe established their camp, which now appears as a low rocky hill, on the shores of Bickerton Island. Later, they relocated northward to Chasm Island where they formed a harmonious relationship with a pair of dolphins, with whom they lead a joyful coexistence, gathering abundant marine resources and playing in the warm waters. However, their tranquility was disrupted when the Tiger-shark, Bangudja, known for his violent tendencies, entered the waters surrounding Chasm Island. He assaulted the peaceful community and a fierce confrontation culminated in the death of the Dolphin-man. This outrage left the Dolphin-woman and her Baler-shell companions deeply traumatised. The Dolphin-woman transformed herself into a lengthy boulder along the coastline, while the Baler-shell family metamorphosed into a striking column situated at the island's summit and on a cliff face on Chasm Island, a red stain resembling a tiger-shark marks the presence of Bangudja. Additionally, the lifeless form of the slain Dolphin-man has solidified into a rock structure, becoming visible at low tide.[9]
Rock art
Westall, William. Chasm Island, native cave painting, 1803, watercolour. National Library of AustraliaWilliam Westall (1803) Chasm Island, native cave painting, 1803, watercolour. National Library of Australia
The first European discovery of aboriginal rock paintings took place on 14 January 1803.[10] During a surveying expedition along the shores and islands of the Gulf of Carpentaria, British navigator and explorer Matthew Flinders made landfall on Chasm Island.
Within the island's rock shelters, Flinders discovered an array of painted and stencilled artworks. To record these images, he enlisted the ship's artist, William Westall.[11] Westall's two watercolour sketches are the earliest known documentation of Australian rock art. In his journal, Flinders not only detailed the location and the artworks but also authored the inaugural site report:
In the deep sides of the chasms were deep holes or caverns undermining the cliffs; upon the walls of which I found rude drawings, made with charcoal and something like red paint upon the white ground of the rock. These drawings represented porpoises, turtle, kanguroos [sic], and a human hand; and Mr. Westall, who went afterwards to see them, found the representation of a kanguroo [sic], with a file of thirty-two persons following after it. The third person of the band was twice the height of the others, and held in his hand something resembling the whaddie, or wooden sword of the natives of Port Jackson; and was probably intended to represent a chief. They could not, as with us, indicate superiority by clothing or ornament, since they wore none of any kind; and therefore, with the addition of a weapon, similar to the ancients, they seem to have made superiority of person the principal emblem of superior power, of which, indeed, power is usually a consequence in the very early stages of society.[12]
The subject matter of the paintings is mostly maritime, though includes other representations;[13] men in canoes with spears and paddles; a man in a canoe with harpooned turtle; a canoe with one person with a steering paddle in the stern and one holding a spear-thrower in the bow; men in canoes spearing dolphin, turtles, large fish, dugong; and depictions of shoals of fish and a water goanna.[14]
Members of the 1948 American-Australian Scientific Expedition to Arnhem Land made tracings and photographs of the rock art,[15][14] Frederick McCarthy, serving as the Curator of Anthropology at the Australian Museum in Sydney, was among the duo of archaeologists engaged in the Expedition. In the early months of 1948, he dedicated a span of 14 weeks on the Groote archipelago, meticulously surveying and documenting rock art sites, as well as conducting excavation work. Collaborating with his American counterpart, Frank Setzler (Head Curator of Anthropology at the Smithsonian Institution), they scoured Groote Eylandt for sites of significance, with McCarthy meticulously recording around 2400 motifs of rock art across three pivotal complexes: Chasm Island, Angoroko, and Junduruna.[16]
This collection of work stands as the most comprehensive documentation of the Groote archipelago rock art ever published though McCarthy[17] was critical of Expeiditon leader Charles Mountford's editing of the expedition reports, claiming he had omitted McCarthy's analysis of Groote Eylandt and Chasm Island rock art.[18] His thorough record-keeping of rock art allowed McCarthy to provide detailed descriptions of the motifs and to outline a framework showcasing the evolution of artistic styles over time.
McCarthy[10] and later Chaloupka[12] note petroglyphs also found on the island that embody the labour of countless generations of Aboriginal artists spanning thousands of years.[16] Over this extended period, their artistic styles evolved, starting from basic outlines in the earliest stages. This progression led to a phase of linear designs before culminating in the final era characterised by pecked intaglios. Initially meticulously crafted, but over time transitioning into rougher peckings on the eroded crust of the boulders. Such shifts in engraving styles, a widespread phenomenon in prehistoric Australia, frequently coincided with notable changes in subject matter. It's likely that these transformations reflected significant shifts in religious beliefs and rituals.[19]
McCarthy's systematic approach to in-field methodology for recording the art, coupled with his subsequent interpretations, signifies a turning point in successive rock art research within Australia. McCarthy's role in the Expedition, viewed in this context, not only contributes to the scientific comprehension of these sites in particular but also signifies the emergence of a distinct Australian discipline. The artwork documented by McCarthy, Mountford and Setzler has been the subject of further study,[14][12]
Related Research Articles
Groote Eylandt is the largest island in the Gulf of Carpentaria and the fourth largest island in Australia. It was named by the explorer Abel Tasman in 1644 and is Dutch for "Large Island" in archaic spelling. The modern Dutch spelling is Groot Eiland.
Indigenous Australian art includes art made by Aboriginal Australians and Torres Strait Islanders, including collaborations with others. It includes works in a wide range of media including painting on leaves, bark painting, wood carving, rock carving, watercolour painting, sculpting, ceremonial clothing and sandpainting; art by Indigenous Australians that pre-dates European colonisation by thousands of years, up to the present day.
Arnhem Land is a historical region of the Northern Territory of Australia. It is located in the north-eastern corner of the territory and is around 500 km (310 mi) from the territorial capital, Darwin. In 1623, Dutch East India Company captain Willem Joosten van Colster sailed into the Gulf of Carpentaria and Cape Arnhem is named after his ship, the Arnhem, which itself was named after the city of Arnhem in the Netherlands.
In archaeology, rock art is human-made markings placed on natural surfaces, typically vertical stone surfaces. A high proportion of surviving historic and prehistoric rock art is found in caves or partly enclosed rock shelters; this type also may be called cave art or parietal art. A global phenomenon, rock art is found in many culturally diverse regions of the world. It has been produced in many contexts throughout human history. In terms of technique, the four main groups are:
Makassar people from the region of Sulawesi in Indonesia began visiting the coast of Northern Australia sometime around the middle of the 18th century, first in the Kimberley region, and some decades later in Arnhem Land. They were men who collected and processed trepang, a marine invertebrate prized for its culinary value generally and for its supposed medicinal properties in Chinese markets. The term Makassan is generally used to apply to all the trepangers who came to Australia.
Gunbalanya is an Aboriginal Australian town in west Arnhem Land in the Northern Territory of Australia, about 300 kilometres (190 mi) east of Darwin. The main language spoken in the community is Kunwinjku. At the 2021 Australian census, Gunbalanya had a population of 1,177.
Anindilyakwa is an Australian Aboriginal language spoken by the Anindilyakwa people on Groote Eylandt and Bickerton Island in the Gulf of Carpentaria in the Northern Territory of Australia. Anindilyakwa is a multiple-classifying prefixing language in which all traditional nouns, adjectives, personal and demonstrative pronouns are prefixed for person, number and gender. According to the 2021 Australian Census, Anindilyakwa was spoken natively by 1,516 people, an increase from 1,283 in 2006.
William Westall was a British landscape artist best known as one of the first artists to work in Australia.
Charles Pearcy Mountford OBE was an Australian anthropologist and photographer. He is known for his pioneering work on Indigenous Australians and his depictions and descriptions of their art. He also led the American-Australian Scientific Expedition to Arnhem Land.
Angurugu is a community located on Groote Eylandt in the Northern Territory, Australia. The main spoken languages are Anindilyakwa, an Australian Aboriginal language, and English. Established as a Mission for the Church Mission Society, it is one of the three main indigenous settlements on the Groote Eylandt archipelago alongside Milyakburra and Umbakumba. According to the 2016 Census, the community had a population of 855, a decrease from 882 in 2006.
The East Arnhem Region is a local government area of the Northern Territory, Australia, governed by the East Arnhem Regional Council. Situated in the far north-eastern corner of the Northern Territory, the region covers an area of 33,310 square kilometres (12,861.06 sq mi) and had a population of approximately 10,345 in June 2018.
The American-Australian Scientific Expedition to Arnhem Land remains one of the most significant, most ambitious and least understood expeditions. Commenced in February 1948, it was one of the largest scientific expeditions to have taken place in Australia and was conducted by a team of Australian and American researchers and support staff.
Frederick David McCarthy was an Australian anthropologist and archaeologist. He worked at the Australian Museum in Sydney and was Foundation Principal of the Australian Institute of Aboriginal Studies, with interests covering Australian archaeology, museology and Aboriginal rock art.
Alyangula is the largest township on Groote Eylandt in the Northern Territory.
The Anindilyakwa people (Warnumamalya) are Aboriginal Australian people living on Groote Eylandt, Bickerton Island, and Woodah Island in the Gulf of Carpentaria in the Northern Territory of Australia.
Wurrwurrwuy stone arrangements is a heritage-listed indigenous site at Yirrkala, Northern Territory, Australia. It is also known as Wurrwurrwuy. It was added to the Northern Territory Heritage Register on 15 August 2007 and to the Australian National Heritage List on 9 August 2013.
Sally Kate May, usually cited as Sally K. May, is an Australian archaeologist and anthropologist. She is an Associate Professor of Archaeology and Museum Studies at the University of Adelaide, Australia. She is a specialist in Indigenous Australian rock art and Australian ethnographic museum collections.
Anne (Annie) Clarke is an Australian archaeologist and heritage specialist. She is a professor of archaeology and heritage at the University of Sydney. Clarke is a leading scholar in Australian archaeology, both historical and Aboriginal, as well as critical heritage studies. She has specialisms in archaeobotany, contact archaeology and rock art.
Umbakumba is a community located on Groote Eylandt in the Gulf of Carpentaria, Northern Territory, Australia. The main spoken languages are Anindilyakwa, an Australian Aboriginal language, and English. There are also several Yolŋu Matha speakers. It is one of the three main settlements on the Groote Eylandt archipelago, including Milyakburra and Angurugu, where Anindilyakwa is the predominant spoken language. According to the 2016 Australian Census, the population of Umbakumba was 503, an increase from 441 in 2011.
Anindilyakwa is a locality on Groote Eylandt, in the Northern Territory, Australia, located about 629 kilometres (391 mi) east of the territory capital of Darwin.
References
↑ "GeoNames.org". www.geonames.org. Archived from the original on 2023-08-17. Retrieved 2023-08-17.
↑ Morgan, Kenneth (2014). Matthew Flinders, maritime explorer of Australia (eBooked.). London: Bloomsbury Publishing. p.125. ISBN9781474210805. OCLC974935350.
↑ Flinders, Matthew; Brown, Robert; Westall, William; Pye, John; Finden, W.; Scott, John (1814). A voyage to Terra Australis: undertaken for the purpose of completing the discovery of that vast country, and prosecuted in the years 1801, 1802, and 1803, in His Majesty's ship the Investigator, and subsequently in the armed vessel Porpoise and Cumberland schooner: with an account of the shipwreck of the Porpoise, arrival of the Cumberland at Mauritius, and imprisonment of the commander during six years and a half in that island (1sted.). Pall-Mall, London: G. & W. Nicol. pp.188–189. OCLC1027327474.
1 2 Peterson, Nicolas; Rigsby, Bruce (1998). Customary marine tenure in Australia (1sted.). Sydney, Australia: Oceania Publications, University of Sydney. p.241. ISBN9781864513585. OCLC47050503.
1 2 Mountford, Charles P.; Roberts, Ainslie (1965). The dreamtime: Australian aboriginal myths in paintings. Adelaide: Rigby. p.78. OCLC1156135016.
1 2 McCarthy, Frederick D.; Australian Museum (1960). The cave paintings of Groote, Eylandt and Chasm Island. Sydney, N.S.W.: Australian Museum. OCLC271765347.
1 2 3 Chaloupka, George (1993). Journey in time: the world's longest continuing art tradition: the 50,000 year story of the Australian aboriginal rock art of Arnhem land. Chatswood, NSW: Reed. pp.80, 123, 238. ISBN9780730103103. OCLC30661847.
↑ Verbrugge, A. R. (1967). "Signification d'empreintes de mains australiennes". Anthropos. 1 (2): 232–235.
1 2 3 McDonald, Jo; Veth, Peter (2012). A companion to rock art. Blackwell companions to anthropology, 18. Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell; Australian National University. ISBN9781444334241. OCLC810335961.
↑ "In Arnhem Land". The Bulletin. 77 (4003): 2. 31 October 1956. Archived from the original on 19 August 2023. Retrieved 17 August 2023– via Trove.
↑ McCarthy, Frederick D. (1960). "The cave paintings of Groote Eylandt and Chasm Island". In Mountford, C.P. (ed.). The American–Australian Scientific Expedition to Arnhem Land. Volume 2: Anthropology and nutrition. Carlton, Vic: Melbourne University Press. pp.297–414, 301.
↑ McCarthy, Frederick D. (1 February 1964). "Island Art Galleries". Walkabout. 30 (2): 38. Archived from the original on 19 August 2023. Retrieved 17 August 2023.
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