Survival, Social Cohesion and Rock Art: The Painted Hands of Western Arnhem Land, Australia

This paper explores the complex story of a particular style of rock art in western Arnhem Land known as ‘Painted Hands’. Using new evidence from recent fieldwork, we present a definition for their style, distribution and place in the stylistic chronologies of this region. We argue these motifs playe...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inCambridge archaeological journal Vol. 30; no. 3; pp. 491 - 510
Main Authors May, Sally K., Taylor, Luke, Frieman, Catherine, Taçon, Paul S.C., Wesley, Daryl, Jones, Tristen, Goldhahn, Joakim, Mungulda, Charlie
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Cambridge, UK Cambridge University Press 01.08.2020
Subjects
Archaeology
Arkeologi
Colonialism
Culture
Hands
Material culture
Native peoples
Petroglyphs
Traditions
Australia
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Summary:This paper explores the complex story of a particular style of rock art in western Arnhem Land known as ‘Painted Hands’. Using new evidence from recent fieldwork, we present a definition for their style, distribution and place in the stylistic chronologies of this region. We argue these motifs played an important cultural role in Aboriginal society during the period of European settlement in the region. We explore the complex messages embedded in the design features of the Painted Hands, arguing that they are more than simply hand stencils or markers of individuality. We suggest that these figures represent stylized and intensely encoded motifs with the power to communicate a high level of personal, clan and ceremonial identity at a time when all aspects of Aboriginal cultural identity were under threat.
ISSN:0959-7743
1474-0540
1474-0540
DOI:10.1017/S0959774320000104