Flinders University researchers have been able to see through floodplains in the Red Lily Lagoon area of West Arnhem Land in Northern Australia by utilizing subsurface imaging and aerial surveys.
These ground-breaking techniques demonstrated how sea levels rose approximately 8,000 years ago, altering this significant Northern Territory landscape.
The fact that their find demonstrates that the ocean had reached this now-inland region has significant repercussions for comprehending the archaeological record of Madjedbebe, Australia’s oldest archaeological site.
The discoveries likewise give a better approach to comprehending the stone craftsmanship in the locale, which is perceived worldwide for its importance and particular style.
Red Lily Lagoon Pleistocene (Ice age) 9,000 years ago visualisation. Credit: Dr Jarrad Knowlessar, Flinders University Research Associate.
By looking at how the silt currently covered underneath the flood fields changed as ocean levels rose, the scientists can perceive how the change in the Red Lily Tidal Pond brought about the development of mangroves that have upheld creatures and marine life in a locale where old Native stone craftsmanship is found. This change has, thus, encouraged a climate that has roused the subjects and creatures in the old stone workmanship.
The researchers claim that the rock art depicts environmental changes at the lagoon because fish, crocodiles, and birds were featured in the art when the floodplain changed to support freshwater habitats for new species. Their findings were published today in the scientific journal PLOS ONE.
Senior Creator and Exploration Partner in the School of Humanities, Expressions, and Sociologies at Flinders College, Dr. Jarrad Knowlessar, says the planning on a very basic level changes our archeological comprehension of the staggering scene in Arnhem Land.
Red Lily Lagoon Pleistocene (Ice age) 9,000 years ago visualisation 2. Credit: Dr Jarrad Knowlessar, Flinders University Research Associate.
“This is a critical scene for figuring out the early human control of Australia. An important method for interpreting the presence and provenance of indigenous cultural material is provided by our reconstruction of Red Lily Lagoon, which enables efficient predictive modeling of prominent cultural sites.
“The general environmental changes that we know took place in this landscape coincide with the timing of the rock art. This is demonstrated by alterations in the artwork’s subject matter, such as the inclusion of large macropods and estuarine animal species like fish and crocodiles. The consideration of freshwater species, like fish and birds, happens in the latest creative styles of this locale, and this mirrors the periods of ecological change when the freshwater floodplains made up the scene.”
Sea level flooding – Mangroves Image. Credit: Dr Jarrad Knowlessar, Flinders University Research Associate.
“This study’s findings indicate that all Pleistocene sites in western Arnhem Land were located close to the ocean and, consequently, mangrove swamps at some point during the landscape’s transformation.” When interpreting changes in stone artifacts, food resources, and the isotope composition of materials from this period of the first Australians, this has significant implications for the paleogeographic settings of these sites.
Electric Resistivity Tomography (ERT), according to co-author Associate Professor Ian Moffat, is a rapid, low-cost, and non-invasive technique that can map significant portions of the Australian landscape to gain a deeper understanding of the country’s ancient history.
“We are demonstrating how ERT data can be used to create landscape models that are useful for comprehending known locations and predicting potential locations of buried archaeological sites. We have demonstrated that non-invasive mapping is possible for this region’s landscapes. This has significant implications not only for the location of brand-new sites but also for the development of a deeper comprehension of the region’s geography and the influence it had on human behavior in the past.”
Sea level flooding at Red Lily Lagoon area. Credit: Dr Jarrad Knowlessar, Flinders University Research Associate.
“Because it is 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,” Red Lily Lagoon has exceptional archaeological significance in Arnhem Land.
Alfred Nayinggull, a traditional owner and co-author, stated, “We want people to see and want people to know what’s been happening many thousand years ago in the past,” emphasizing the significance of this study.
More information: Jarrad Kowlessar et al, Reconstructing archaeological palaeolandscapes using geophysical and geomatic survey techniques: An example from Red Lily Lagoon, Arnhem Land, Australia, PLOS ONE (2023). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0283006
