Art and stone : towards a prehistory of central western Queensland
Abstract
This thesis explores the potential of a multi-attribute approach
to the prehistory of,central western Queensland.
Two artefacts of Aboriginal culture are examined in detail
stone tools and rock art. For the stone analysis, excavated
assemblages from four rockshelter sites are used to define regional
changes in central western stone-use over the past 11,000 years.
Spatial patter ning of artefactual material within sites is also
described and related to site use-structure and specific, depositional
processes. The results of the sequential and spatial analyses are
then compared with those obtained from , other sites in the area,
particularly Kenniff and Cathedral Caves. A three-part sequence is
defined for Central Queensland and related to general patterns of
change in Australian Aboriginal stone use.
The analysis of rock art in Central Queensland is based on
information from 92 recorded art sites. The history of previous work
on the art of the region is briefly outlined and the details of the
art recording and classification systems given.
A variety of techniques is used to define a relative, then a
dated artistic sequence which spans a minimum of 4,200 years.
Synchronic variation within broadly contemporaneous art assemblages is
used in conjunction with contextual evidence to suggest the former
role of rock art in local Aboriginal culture. The implications of sequential change in several aspects of the artistic system are
discussed in a wider context, with particular reference to evidence
from other areas of Queensland and to general models for change in
Australian Aboriginal rock art.
In the conclusions, the results of the stone and rock art
analyses are compared, contrasted, and common explanatory mechanisms
advanced.