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Ancient world of Wollemi pine reveals new treasure

A 4,000 year old record of stunning and rare rock art hidden for generations by its rugged and inhospitable location has been revealed at a cave on Sydney's doorstep.

Australian Museum's resident rock art specialist and Principal Research Scientist in Anthropology, Dr Paul Taçon, said the incredibly important new find in Wollemi National Park has more than 203 separate depictions and up to 12 different layers of art created over time in different geographic styles.

"It is like an ancient world that time forgot. We've never seen anything quite like this combination of rare representations in so many layers. For instance our analysis has revealed an unusually large percentage of bird related imagery in several layers of the rock art," said Dr Taçon.

"The superimposed layers in various colours such as red, yellow, white and charcoal black are in pristine condition and include stencils, drawings and one painting."

There are half human half animal composites arranged in groups and various sorts of human-like figures. The drawings are dominated by a range of birds, lizards and marsupials. There are life-size, delicately drawn eagles, kangaroos and an extremely rare depiction of a wombat. Stencils include hands, hand-and-arms, boomerangs and hafted axes.

"We are incredibly excited about what the cave has revealed to us of the long record of visitors to the area. It is amazing to contemplate why people repeatedly travelled great distances through such a rugged landscape, without modern aids such as GPS or all terrain vehicles, to leave their marks on this cave time and again," Dr Taçon.

Darkinjung Local Aboriginal Land Council Chairman Dave Pross said it's visual proof that different groups of Aboriginal people were there, even though they aren't there now.

"It shows our traditional practices, where we were. We're just trying to get the history of it and look after it," said Mr Pross.

Dr Taçon agreed that this is a spectacular result to further uncover the little known cultural heritage of Wollemi National Park.

"We worked very closely with local Aboriginal people as partners in research and we really want to ensure these marvellous examples of Australian heritage are protected," he said.

NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) Blue Mountains Regional Manager Geoff Luscombe said the Service is charged with protecting the State's Aboriginal cultural heritage and the site's exact location is restricted in order to protect it from inadvertent or wilful damage.

"NPWS has strict protocols in place to ensure the cave is protected," Mr Luscombe said.

"It is a very sensitive site and the smallest things such as dust from foot traffic can damage this beautiful and rare part of our heritage.

"This find and the discovery of the Wollemi Pine show how valuable our wild places are. They can tell us about the world of plants and animals, in the past and in the present, and how people have had a relationship with these places for tens of thousands of years."

The project was part of an investigation into the cultural heritage of the Wollemi and nearby portions of the Blue Mountains World Heritage Area. It is lead by the Australian Museum's Dr Paul Taçon, consultant archaeologist Wayne Brennan and included members of the local Darkingung, Darug and Wiradjuri communities and other experts from the Australian Museum. One of the long-term aims of the project is to better interpret and protect the region's rock-art.

Red stencils are the oldest images at the site. They lie under all other stencil and drawing layers and are possibly up to 4,000 years of age if indications from better dated sites in the Sydney Basin are any indication.

There are three different hafted stone axe stencils at Eagle's Reach. This one lies over black drawings, as does a second, but a third lies underneath.

There are dozens of part human, part animal composite figures at Eagles Reach, some with bird-like heads, others with kangaroo-like heads. They may depict Ancestral Beings according to Aboriginal people.

This skilfully depicted goanna was initially a black infilled drawing. Subsequent Aboriginal artists added a white outline and long tongue.

This kangaroo-headed composite figure is very similar in form and style to that found at a site near the Hawksbury River, far to the east.

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