Tag Archives: South Australian Museum

The Barngarla museum project: Community visit and hope for the future

Posted on August 4, 2016 by Jacinta Koolmatrie | Comments Off on The Barngarla museum project: Community visit and hope for the future

By Jacinta Koolmatrie, Master of Archaeology and Heritage Management student

My directed study, which involved cataloguing Barngarla artefacts and archival information, has officially come to an end. Initially I wanted to give someone the same feeling that I received when I found my Poppa’s boomerang on display. Unfortunately, none of the Barngarla artefacts said who made them. In fact, only one stated that it is a Barngarla object, while the others only said they were collected from the Barngarla region. Amongst the collection were spears, a boomerang, a shield, clubs, carvings, food, ochre samples, ornaments and stone tools. This range of artefacts is great, as it was not limited to one or two types

Barngarla Artefact Collection

Barngarla Artefact Collection

Although it may seem to be a small task, the project has a flow on effect that can lead to cataloguing Barngarla artefacts from other museums in Australia and possibly the world. Not only is that possible, but it can also make viewing these artefacts more accessible for all members of that Indigenous community. On the 18th of July I was able to meet with two members of the Barngarla community and show them the artefacts that I have included in my report. Evelyn Walker (my main contact and Chairperson of the Barngarla Native Title Holders Aboriginal Corporation) and Jayden Richards are both descendants of Susie Glennie, the woman whom I discussed in my previous blog post. It was great to finally show them what I had worked on throughout the semester. We discussed the possibility of exhibitions of the collection and they left knowing that Barngarla people are welcome to view the collection in the future. Although my part in the project has finished, it has created a closer relationship between Barngarla people and museums. This is something that I believe should be pursued both by museums and Indigenous people.

Myself, Evelyn Walker and Jayden Richards during Barngarla museum visit.

Myself, Evelyn Walker and Jayden Richards during the Barngarla museum visit.

Throughout the semester this project has made me think more deeply about the position that the museum holds and what it means to be an Indigenous person who would one day like to work within one. Museums should be about celebrating different cultures and showing that Indigenous people are not all the same and that we are a diverse group of people who have different cultures. If more collection catalogues are created they will be able to show this diversity. As an Indigenous person I would want to make sure that more Indigenous people are able to take hold of their heritage and have a say in how it is presented. My hope for the future would be for more students to take up the opportunity of doing a directed study like this, but more specifically for more Indigenous people to feel comfortable with contacting the museum and creating their own catalogues of artefacts from their region.

Evelyn has also commented on the project, stating that recording objects is vital to preserving their ancestry. Museums and people who have private collections can assist with this by letting Barngarla people know what they have. This is what Evelyn hopes to see happen in the future, and she has been fortunate enough to receive some information about Barngarla-related heritage in the Port Lincoln region. With more information on objects and Barngarla people, Evelyn aims to revive artefact and craft making skills within the community.

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The last of the Paŋgala tribe?

Posted on June 15, 2016 by Jacinta Koolmatrie | Comments Off on The last of the Paŋgala tribe?

By Jacinta Koolmatrie, Master of Archaeology and Heritage Management student
My previous post discussed the difficulty I had with finding a spear as a part of my directed study. Unfortunately, it could not be found. In addition, I am required to catalogue any archival documents that refer to Barngarla land or people. I have found that the collection mostly consists of maps, images and journals. Of the images I viewed, I found two that were relevant to my topic. The first was a slide that had the words:
“SPEARS
Paŋkala Tribe Green Patch S Aust…”
The slide also includes additional writing saying that it was taken in 1964 by Norman Tindale and that it was taken in someone’s home. This image is interesting, as it appears to contain similar looking spears to those in the artefact collection. However, in the image there are six spears, while there are only three in the collection. It would be interesting to find out if those spears in the image actually are those in the collection and also if Tindale had taken all three. If he did, where are the other three? A look in one of his journals should indicate what has happened to these spears.

The second image, of a woman, was taken in 1939 by Tindale. On the reverse of the image it stated that she was a Pangkala (Barngarla) woman and also that she is the “Last of the tribe Iron Knob”. Her name was not included. Reading this seemed amusing, as it is clear that she was definitely not the last Barngarla woman. There were obvious descendants who were also Barngarla. Looking at the date of the image I decided to see if Tindale had mentioned this woman in his journal. The issue with his journals is that his writing is not the clearest. In fact, I could not read most of it. However, on the date that the image was taken I could clearly read his entry about a two-hour talk he had with a woman who happened to be the “last of the Paŋgala tribe”. I note that Tindale switched between his spellings during this time: Barngarla is written in a number of ways throughout the journal. The best part about this entry is that it included her name and her step brother’s name. Hopefully, showing this image to the Barngarla community will help them identify the woman within their community and determine whether she has any direct descendants.

Finding these images has brought me closer to my original goal of giving someone else the same feeling I received when I found my Poppa’s boomerang in the museum. I recently had a brief discussion with someone from the Barngarla community about the image of the woman and they were very excited about it. It has made me feel even more enthusiastic about finding out who she is and whether she is mentioned in other journals.

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Koonalda Cave and Archaeology at the South Australian Museum.

Posted on December 30, 2011 by | Comments Off on Koonalda Cave and Archaeology at the South Australian Museum.

By Sam Hedditch- Graduate Diploma of Archaeology student.

This is the third of my four blog posts for the Flinders Cultural Heritage Practicum I am completing at the South Australian Museum stores at Hindmarsh. I am currently left with three weeks of my placement before my hours have been completed and I am a little sad because I am sure I will miss the people and the artefacts I have been lucky enough to work with.

The past few weeks have taken another exciting turn in my placement at the Museum. John Hodges very kindly included me on the work on the Koonalda Cave material from the Alexander Gallus/Richard Wright excavations. We were going through one of Gallus’ trenches to find evidence of organic materials for dating purposes within boxes that related to particular site layers. A range of organic materials (e.g. bone and shell) can now return reliable radiocarbon dates whereas previously dating was largely conducted on charcoal.  We were also able to find stone tools that had ‘cementation’ of sand, dirt and limestone, as this information is part of a development in dating between geochemistry and archaeology.

Figure 1- One of the illustrations of a Flint nodule from the Koonalda Cave. (Courtesy of South Australian Museum)

Researchers at the South Australian Museum hope to submit three small specimens from this collection from various layers in the trench to give some good preliminary dates in order to back a research grant for a more wide-scale dating program.  This whole process was unfamiliar to me and the fact that many grant applications are being submitted illustrated that the best possible proposal must be put forward in order to receive the grant.

We ultimately found a range of interesting items that were suitable for C14 dating. Interestingly, we also found some small bones, possibly from a masked owl (now extinct in the Nullarbor region), that are shaped like a bone point. There was also a flint stone flake that had charcoal, bone and a cementation of limestone as its cortex, that would also be a very useful artefact for the dating program.  There were also some fascinating stone flakes and what John and I thought were small picks and axes used by people in the caves to quarry the stone.

Figure 2- A dumpy level survey map of the Koonalda Cave. There are many different maps that help piece together the site and its separate excavation seasons.(Courtesy of South Australian Museum)

However, the primary goal as stated above was to find these three samples and be able to link them to various site layers in the notes and maps associated with the excavation. Dr Walshe had a number of large scale maps laid out on the work floor which had been compiled throughout the many seasons by museum staff and speleologists working in the excavations.  The maps were useful in correlating all of the artefacts and the context in which they were collected.

Another critical piece of evidence were the notebooks of Gallus that described the material and layers within the trench that we were sorting. Gallus’ method of recording was certainly not the easiest to follow in terms of handwriting and following a logical order re: page numbers and nomenclature etc, so we had some difficulties reconciling all of the data and finding three suitable samples.

Figure 3- A page from Gallus' notebook. This is why it is important to write clear notes! (Courtesy of the South Australian Museum)

After much time and toil, our samples were found and we are in the process of having them dated. It is again a terrific experience for me and a great opportunity to be a part of this research. It demonstrated that, due to the difficulties associated with obtaining permission to dig old sites like caves or dig new ones, there are available and complete research designs that can be implemented on old collections held in museums. Even the notes and the story of the Koonalda Cave could produce its own archaeological narrative with the right interest, care and dedication.

Figure 4- A profile drawn by Gallus of one of the excavation sites. This was vital information to link layer numbers on the artefacts in the boxes to the notes and the profile sketches. (Courtesy South Australian Museum)

Needless to say, museums are not at all boring places and the excitement at the Hindmarsh store is palpable.  Better yet, I have three more weeks to further my own archaeological interests and work and to learn from some really humble, dedicated and inspiring professionals

Til next time!

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The research potential of the South Australian Museum Collections

Posted on October 7, 2011 by | 1 comment

By Sam Hedditch, Graduate Student

This is the second of my blog posts for the Cultural Heritage Practicum (read my first post here). In the past few weeks I have completed a variety of recording and labelling tasks with a number of different collections. While some of the materials are from recently excavated and less well known sites, others are from quite old and well known areas and their location at the museum stores is the best place for their storage and for further research.

Of particular interest so far has been the re-sorting of various excavations completed at Koonalda Cave in SA. It is hoped that working through the notebooks of the staff on the digs and the excavated materials that are currently at the museum may produce traces of organic material suitable for radiocarbon dating. This should extend the age of habitation of the cave well past the 20,000 BP that is currently accepted.

Shell artefacts from the Lake George collection. Part of a huge midden with many layers!

My most recent project has been re-bagging and labelling a collection of shells from an apparently enormous midden at Lake George, near Beachport in South East South Australia. A number of different shells occur in many of the units of the excavation and there was also a piece of very interesting glass near the surface of one site.

Some of the articles being rebagged from the Lake George collection.

Needless to say, there is a great potential for research by archaeologists interested at the museum. Going back over the old material donated and collected with a fresh approach or new techniques could be instrumental in revealing new information about the area or the people who lived there.

Until next time, I will continue patiently bagging and labelling! I am having a great time there is a wealth of information and relics on record here, sure to inspire the minds of many archaeologists (including me!).

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Photography with Tindale

Posted on October 5, 2011 by | Comments Off on Photography with Tindale

By Adrian Fenech, Graduate Diploma, Archaeology student

This practicum involves working in the South Australian Museum Science Centre adding new indexed information to the online archives. I am analysing photographic slides taken by the well-known Australian ethnographer Norman Tindale.  Tindale travelled around Australia documenting Aboriginal languages, clan or language group territories and material culture (Tindale 1974: 121 and 164). The indexed information I document will be made available to the public. However, some access limitations exist in relation to the materials listed in the index mostly due to cultural sensitivity provisions.

The 35mm photographic slides were taken by Norman Tindale on his many trips around Australia and elsewhere. The information regarding these slides will be available in the online archives and will include information such as the location and a description of the slide subject. These slides can be useful for research purposes, either general interest or academic because the slides can be linked to one of Tindale’s numerous journals. They can also be of great interest to Indigenous communities who may be the subject of the photographs.

Entering slides into the database

As noted above, not all slides will be available in the archive because some were removed by various Aboriginal representatives due to the fact that they contained sensitive cultural material. A few other slides are still physically in the material archives but have been labelled as restricted. Some indexing information has, however, been allowed on the online archive, at least enough to give a general idea of the slide, for example when and where the photograph was taken.

You can look through the Tindale Archives at:

http://www.samuseum.sa.gov.au/archives/collections

References

Tindale, N.B. 1974, Aboriginal Tribes of Australia. Berkeley: University of California Press.

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Working at the South Australian Museum Collections

Posted on October 3, 2011 by | 1 comment

By Sam Hedditch, Graduate Diploma in Archaeology Student

This is the first of my four blog posts in regards to the Cultural Heritage Practicum topic at Flinders. I will briefly describe what type of work I will be completing while under the employ of the Museum.

My predominant focus in the practicum will be lithics, or stone artefacts, which are a great interest of mine. I am working for Dr Keryn Walshe, Head Archaeologist and Researcher for the South Australian Museum. Keryn has done some amazing work in documentation and in archaeology in general. Her book, Roonka: Fugitive Traces and Climatic Mischief, is evidence of her skills and knowledge in Aboriginal cultural material. I consider myself to be very privileged to be working for her in this program and I am sure to learn a great deal.

I am principally working at the Hindmarsh store of the SA Museum. This was recently taken up by the museum having previously been used as an old state library storage space. There are an astounding number of artefacts and papers regarding archaeological work and material that are stored here. Many of the items currently at the store are donations from benefactors and are yet to be accessioned. Going through this material will form a large part of my practicum at the museum.

Canoe at entrance to State Library Building.

Correctly recording and cataloguing items is a very important job at museums and is the only way to account for the whereabouts of so many types of artefacts.

In some collections I will give a rough description of the type of artefact, the raw material of the artefact and any noteworthy features. The goal is to store the items appropriately so that they are more readily available for analysis in the future. Many challenges occur in this process as the paper, tape or marker used to note the artefacts may have worn out since its original collection by the benefactor and their interpretations of the type of artefact may differ entirely from current conventions.

Shelves at Hindmarsh store. My workspaces is on the left.

I have met a number of other researchers and volunteers at the store, and have been lucky enough to work closely with some on certain collections. They have a great deal of knowledge about their respective topics and working with such people will benefit my overall educational experience throughout my placement. I have already seen some rare and stunning examples of pre- and post-contact artefacts and can’t wait to see more.

Until next time, it’s back to the shelves for me!

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Anthropological Society of South Australia launches “Grave Concerns”

Posted on December 19, 2010 by | Comments Off on Anthropological Society of South Australia launches “Grave Concerns”

A crowd of enthusiasts gathered at the Royal Society Room at the South Australian Museum on Wednesday 15th December to enjoy a glass of champagne and hear Dr Kathryn Powell talk about her new book, Grave Concerns:  Locating and Unearthing Human Bodies (2010, Australian Academic Press).

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