Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Into The Past: A Step Towards A Robust Kimberley Rock Art Chronology, June Ross, Kira E. Westaway, Meg Travers, Michael J. Morwood, John Hayward

Faculty of Science, Medicine and Health - Papers: part A

The recent establishment of a minimum age estimate of 39.9 ka for the origin of rock art in Sulawesi has challenged claims that Western Europe was the locus for the production of the world’s earliest art assemblages. Tantalising excavated evidence found across northern Australian suggests that Australia too contains a wealth of ancient art. However, the dating of rock art itself remains the greatest obstacle to be addressed if the significance of Australian assemblages are to be recognised on the world stage. A recent archaeological project in the northwest Kimberley trialled three dating techniques in order to establish chronological markers …