| The Aborigines of the Whitsunday Islands were called the Ngaro.
The Ngaro are one of the earliest recorded Aboriginal groups
in Australia. In 1770, Captain James Cook recorded a sighting
of two Ngaro people while exploring the Whitsunday Passage.
The Ngaro were often called the `Island People', as their territory
extended north - south along the island chain which make up
the Cumberland Group. It also included the coast on the adjacent
mainland, but no further than the coastal fringe. |
| While the Ngaro people occupied
much of the land that we know today
as the Whitsunday Islands, similarities
to aborigines living in the Proserpine
region suggests that possible trade
links existed between the coast and
the hinterland. However, the Ngaro
people were largely self sufficient.
They developed an art style that was
unique from their neighbours, as seen
in paintings near the Nara Inlet site.
This site was ideally situated, as it
was dry and well insulated from the
heat. It had a strategic outlook for
defensive purposes. The Ngaro
people were typically nomadic and
probably visited this site for short
periods of time throughout the year. |
| In their occupation as maritime
hunters and gatherers, the Ngaro
men learned to become skilled
navigators. Accounts have been
made of sightings of Aborigines
paddling from Double Cone Island to
South Molle Island, a distance of
21 km. The women collected
vegetables, seeds, fruits, and
shellfish; they also prepared the food
for cooking.
The Ngaro actively managed their
environment through constant
burning, and conservation practises.
Burning allowed easier access
through otherwise dense rainforest,
promoted new growth and stimulated
animal activity.
Stone-walled fish traps were used as
a hunting device and have been
described as automatic seafood
retrieval systems. These traps are
further evidence of management of
resources. |
| To increase their harvest of the sea,
the Ngaro tribe developed sturdy three
piece bark canoes. These canoes
were capable of open sea journeys.
Captain James Cook commented, "On
a sandy beach upon one of the islands,
we saw two people and a canoe with
an outrigger, which appeared to be
both larger and differently built to any
we have seen upon the coast."
Canoes were constructed out of three
diamond shapes of bark, one for the
bottom, the other two for the sides.
A fibrous root was used to sew the
three pieces together. Any forming
cracks were mended by using a roll from
the paper tea tree plant. The outer rim
of the canoe was stiffened by two
saplings sewn inside.
Middens
Middens are prehistoric refuse heaps,
consisting mostly of shells and bones.
They play an important role in
archaeology when analysed, and can
help determine the diet and length of
stay of inhabitants.
The middens of Nara Inlet consisted of
flowers, grasses, wood, delicate fish
bones, large sheets of paper bark and
ochre. Radio carbon data from the very
bottom of the floor deposit (80cm) was
obtained from charcoal and from this it
was determined that Aboriginal people
began using the cave 2500 years ago.
Other Whitsunday Island sites are 8150
years old (some 6000 years before the
time of Christ). These middens consisted
of crabs, rock platform species, mud
dwellers. sea turtles and a small whale.
Terrestrial fauna such as marsupials,
rodents, reptiles, lizards, snakes and
birds were also found as well as many
edible plants.
The large deposits of shells indicates
that shellfish were an important part of
the diet. The strong, sharp edges of
the shell also made an important tool for
gutting animals and removing bark
from trees.
|
| Rock Art
Due to the Aboriginal groups having
different histories and environments, it
is not surprising that there is a wide
variety of subject matter and styles of
rock art found throughout Australia.
Many Aboriginal paintings and
engravings are so old that it is hard to
interpret why they were made, or what
their real meaning may be. |
