MSGID: 1:317/3 6455d7fe   
   PID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
   TID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
   more than 60,000 years ago    
    Red Lily Lagoon in West Arnhem Land is an important archaeological   
   landscape with significant implications for understanding the First Australians   
      
      
     Date:   
         May 5, 2023   
     Source:   
         Flinders University   
     Summary:   
         Scientists have used sub-surface imaging and aerial surveys to   
         see through floodplains in the Red Lily Lagoon area of West Arnhem   
         Land in Australia. These ground-breaking methods showed how this   
         important landscape in the Northern Territory was altered as sea   
         levels rose about 8,000 years ago.   
      
      
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   FULL STORY   
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   Scientists at Flinders University have used sub-surface imaging and   
   aerial surveys to see through floodplains in the Red Lily Lagoon area   
   of West Arnhem Land in Northern Australia.   
      
   These ground-breaking methods showed how this important landscape in the   
   Northern Territory was altered as sea levels rose about 8,000 years ago.   
      
   Their discovery shows that the ocean had reached this, now inland region,   
   which has important implications for understanding the archaeological   
   record of Madjedbebe -- the oldest archaeological site in Australia.   
      
   The findings also provide a new way to understand the rock art in the   
   region, which is recognised globally for its significance and distinctive   
   style.   
      
   By examining how sediments now buried beneath the flood plains changed as   
   sea levels rose, the researchers can see how the transformation of Red   
   Lily Lagoon had resulted in the growth of mangroves that have supported   
   animal and marine life in a region where ancient Indigenous rock art is   
   located. This transformation has, in turn, fostered an environment that   
   has inspired the subjects and animals in the ancient rock art.   
      
   In their findings published in in the scientific journal PLOS ONE today,   
   the researchers say environmental changes at the lagoon are reflected   
   in the rock art because fish, crocodiles and birds were featured in the   
   art when the floodplain transformed to support freshwater habitats for   
   new species.   
      
   Senior Author and Research Associate in the College of Humanities, Arts,   
   and Social Sciences at Flinders University, Dr Jarrad Knowlessar, says   
   the mapping fundamentally changes our archaeological understanding of   
   the stunning landscape in Arnhem Land.   
      
   "This is a key landscape for understanding the early human occupation   
   of Australia. Our reconstruction of Red Lily Lagoon enables effective   
   predictive modelling of prominent cultural sites and provides an   
   important method to interpret the presence and provenance of Indigenous   
   cultural material."  "The timing of rock art aligns with the broader   
   environmental changes we understand took place in this landscape. This   
   is evident through changes in subject matter in the art, such as large   
   macropods, and the appearance of estuarine animal species such as fish   
   and crocodiles in the art. The inclusion of freshwater species, such as   
   fish and birds, occurs in the most recent artistic styles of this region,   
   and this reflects the phases of environmental change when the freshwater   
   floodplains made up the landscape."  "Based on the results of this study,   
   all Pleistocene sites in western Arnhem Land were near the ocean and,   
   subsequently, mangrove swamps at some point during the transformation of   
   the landscape. This has important implications for the paleogeographic   
   settings of these sites, which must be considered when interpreting   
   changes in stone artefacts, food resources, and the isotope composition   
   of materials from this period of the first Australians."  Co-author,   
   Associate Professor Ian Moffat, says Electric Resistivity Tomography   
   (ERT) is a rapid, low-cost, non-invasive method that can map large areas   
   of the Australian landscape to better understand their ancient history.   
      
   "We are showcasing how ERT data can be used to develop landscape   
   models that are useful when it comes to understanding known locations   
   as well as predicting where buried archaeological sites might be. We   
   have demonstrated that the landscapes of this region can be effectively   
   mapped using non-invasive methods.   
      
   This has important implications for locating new sites but also for   
   developing a more nuanced understanding of the regional geography, and   
   its impact on past human behaviour."  "Red Lily Lagoon has exceptional   
   archaeological significance in Arnhem Land as it is situated at one of   
   the easternmost points of the East Alligator River floodplain, where the   
   modern river, the Arnhem Plateau, creates a significant boundary between   
   the low-lying floodplains and the sandstone highlands, which have been   
   occupied by humans for over 60,000 years and are the location of countless   
   significant sites, including some of the most iconic rock art panels in   
   Australia."  Traditional owner and co-author Alfred Nayinggull described   
   the importance of this research as "We want people to see and want people   
   to know what's been happening many thousand years ago in the past. "   
       * RELATED_TOPICS   
             o Earth_&_Climate   
                   # Ecology # Geography # Environmental_Awareness #   
                   Sustainability   
             o Fossils_&_Ruins   
                   # Cultures # Lost_Treasures # Ancient_Civilizations #   
                   Anthropology   
       * RELATED_TERMS   
             o Sea_level o Antarctic_ice_sheet o   
             Neandertal_interaction_with_Cro-Magnons o Homo_(genus)   
             o Aerial_photography o Greenland_ice_sheet o   
             Geology_of_the_Capitol_Reef_area o Breaking_wave   
      
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   Story Source: Materials provided by Flinders_University. Note: Content   
   may be edited for style and length.   
      
      
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   Journal Reference:   
      1. Jarrad Kowlessar, Ian Moffat, Daryl Wesley, Mark Willis, Shay   
         Wrigglesworth, Tristen Jones, Alfred Nayinggul. Reconstructing   
         archaeological palaeolandscapes using geophysical and   
         geomatic survey techniques: An example from Red Lily Lagoon,   
         Arnhem Land, Australia. PLOS ONE, 2023; 18 (5): e0283006 DOI:   
         10.1371/journal.pone.0283006   
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   Link to news story:   
   https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/05/230505101703.htm   
      
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