Containers of power : fibre forms from Northeast Arnhem Land Australia

Abstract

This thesis is a study of fibre container forms primarily made by women today in Arnhem Land. It investigates a complex set of relationships between the forms, mainly baskets, bags and mats, their makers and users, their functions, their morphology, their manufacture, and history. It does this within the cultural context of Yolηu cosmology with emphasis on the belief system and relationship of the forms to other items of material culture. Although the majority of the contemporary material for this study is from Gapuwiyak in eastern Arnhem Land it draws upon work from the entirety of Arnhem Land, historical and contemporary. My theoretical approach is one in which I consider these objects as having cultural biographies. It also examines the resonances of terminology and symbolism between the human and bathi corpus. In this context the processes that are involved in their making and use are essential in establishing the position of bathi in the community. In this thesis I argue that bathi are powerful and meaningful objects for makers and users and are one of the key means by which to access and understand Aboriginal cosmology from northeast Arnhem Land.