Australian Aboriginal prehistoric sites facts for kids

Australian Aboriginal prehistoric sites are special places where archaeologists find clues about the lives of the first people in Australia, the Aboriginal Australians. These sites can be caves, rock shelters, or open areas where people lived, hunted, and created art thousands of years ago. By studying these sites, we learn about their ancient cultures, tools, and how they adapted to different environments over a very long time.

What are Prehistoric Sites?

Prehistoric sites are like ancient time capsules. They are places where people lived before written history began. For Aboriginal Australians, this means before Europeans arrived. Archaeologists dig carefully at these sites to find things left behind by ancient people. These things include stone tools, animal bones, plant remains, and even ancient fireplaces. Each discovery helps us understand how people lived, what they ate, and what their daily lives were like.

How Do We Know How Old They Are?

To figure out how old these sites and the things found in them are, scientists use special dating methods.

• Radiocarbon Dating (C14): This method is used for things that were once alive, like charcoal from old fires or animal bones. It measures a type of carbon that slowly disappears over time. By seeing how much is left, scientists can tell how old the sample is.
• Optical Stimulated Luminescence (OSL): This method is used for sand or soil. It measures the last time these grains were exposed to sunlight. This helps date when artefacts were buried in the ground.
• Uranium-Thorium Dating (U/Th): This method is used for older materials, especially those made of calcium carbonate, like cave formations or shells. It measures the decay of uranium into thorium.

These methods help scientists create a timeline of human activity in Australia, showing how long Aboriginal people have lived on this continent.

Important Discoveries in the Northern Territory

The Northern Territory is home to some of the oldest known Aboriginal sites in Australia. These sites show how early people lived and developed their cultures.

Madjedbebe (Malakunanja II)

Madjedbebe, also known as Malakunanja II, is a very important rock shelter. It's located in Arnhem Land. Scientists have found stone tools here that are incredibly old.

• Some tools found deep in the ground are estimated to be around 61,000 years old! This makes Madjedbebe one of the oldest known sites in Australia.
• Other discoveries include pieces of ochre (a natural pigment used for art and ceremonies) and grindstones, which are tools used for grinding seeds or other materials. These finds suggest that people were using complex tools and possibly creating art very early on.

Nawalabila I

Nawalabila I is another significant rock shelter in the Northern Territory. Like Madjedbebe, it has provided evidence of very early human occupation.

• Archaeologists found artefacts buried deep, suggesting people were living here around 60,300 years ago.
• The site shows continuous use over thousands of years, with different layers of tools and other items found at various depths. This helps scientists understand how people's lives changed over time.

Malangangerr

Malangangerr is a site where some of the earliest ground-edge axes were found.

• These axes, dating back about 22,900 years, are important because they show advanced tool-making skills. Ground-edge axes are sharper and more efficient than simple flaked stone tools.
• The discovery of these axes tells us about the clever ways Aboriginal people adapted their tools for different tasks, like chopping wood.

Nawamoyn

Nawamoyn is another site where ancient ground-edge axes were discovered.

• These axes are about 21,450 years old.
• Finding similar tools at different sites like Malangangerr and Nawamoyn helps archaeologists understand how tool-making knowledge spread across different groups of people.

Puritjarra

Puritjarra is a rock shelter in the central desert of the Northern Territory.

• Artefacts found here are estimated to be around 30,000 years old.
• This site is important because it shows that Aboriginal people lived not just along the coasts but also deep in the dry interior of Australia very early on.

Important Discoveries in New South Wales

New South Wales also has important prehistoric sites that tell us about ancient Aboriginal life.

Cuddie Springs

Cuddie Springs is an open site, meaning it's not a cave or rock shelter.

• This site is unique because it has evidence of both human activity and megafauna (very large ancient animals, like giant kangaroos and wombats) living at the same time.
• This suggests that early Aboriginal people might have interacted with these huge animals, possibly even hunting them, though more research is always ongoing.

Important Discoveries in South Australia

South Australia has also revealed fascinating insights into ancient Aboriginal history.

Warratyi

Warratyi is a rock shelter in the Flinders Ranges.

• This site is incredibly important because it shows that Aboriginal people lived in the arid (dry) interior of Australia much earlier than previously thought.
• Discoveries at Warratyi include tools, bones of extinct megafauna, and even the earliest evidence of bone tools in Australia. This site pushes back the timeline for human occupation in the Australian desert.

Important Discoveries in Western Australia

Western Australia has its own set of significant prehistoric sites, particularly along the coast.

Rottnest Island

Rottnest Island, off the coast of Perth, has an interesting discovery.

• A flint tool found embedded in limestone on the island is estimated to be very old, possibly around 70,000 years old.
• This find is significant because Rottnest Island is now separated from the mainland by water. This suggests that when the tool was dropped, sea levels were much lower, and the island was connected to the mainland, or people traveled by sea very early.

Upper Swan Bridge

The Upper Swan Bridge site near Perth is a campsite.

• Evidence of human occupation, including charcoal from ancient fires, dates back around 39,500 years.
• This site gives us clues about early campsites and how people lived along the Swan River.

Mandu Mandu Creek Rock Shelter

Mandu Mandu Creek Rock Shelter is a coastal site.

• Archaeologists found evidence of early occupation here, including a shell necklace.
• The shell necklace, dating back about 34,299 years, is one of the earliest examples of personal adornment found in Australia. This shows that ancient Aboriginal people had a sense of beauty and created decorative items.

Devil's Lair

Devil's Lair is a cave site in the southwest of Western Australia.

• This cave has a long history of human use, with evidence of occupation dating back around 32,800 years.
• It's a rich site for understanding the diet and activities of ancient Aboriginal people in a forested coastal environment.

See Also

• Archaeology of Australia
• History of Indigenous Australians