Gilbunj Country (MabelDowns)
My Grandfather’s Country. My Mother Birthplace
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My Childhood story by Shirley Purdie
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Kilkayi Barramundi Dreaming
Three women trying to trap Dayiwul the great barramundi with spinifex nets. This is a traditional method of fishing where by nyiyirriny (river spinifex) is rolled and placed in the water forming a kind of net. Dayiwul was too clever for the women and jumped over the barrier they had laid. She pushed her body through the rock of what is now called Pitt Range. The women gave up and walked to a place called Gawinyji (Cattle Creek) where they turned into rocks.
The scales of Dayiwul embedded in the rock, became the diamonds that are extracted from the Argyle Diamond Mine.
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Kilkayi Barramundi Dreaming
Three women trying to trap Dayiwul the great barramundi with spinifex nets. This is a traditional method of fishing where by nyiyirriny (river spinifex) is rolled and placed in the water forming a kind of net. Dayiwul was too clever for the women and jumped over the barrier they had laid. She pushed her body through the rock of what is now called Pitt Range. The women gave up and walked to a place called Gawinyji (Cattle Creek) where they turned into rocks.
The scales of Dayiwul embedded in the rock, became the diamonds that are extracted from the Argyle Diamond Mine.
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Young boy seeking ground sugar bag
“This is a story about a young boy seeking ground sugar bag.
All my elders were out looking for ground sugar bag near the Mabel down hill, they been looking all day they were all weak and tired from digging in the ant hills looking for this ground sugar bag.
they told one young boy who was in the group with them to climb up and look around where the fat anthills (termite mounds) are that may have the ground sugar bag.
He climbed up Mabel down hill, he said nothing here in the middle where we been looking, only sunrise side and sun set side the young boy said.
On his way back down the hill he turned into a rock dreaming that’s him on the top of this hill in my painting.”
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Kimberley Boab
The Kimberley Boab, through all the different seasons and colours. Some of the boabs are burnt, some with nuts and some green and dry.
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Kilkayi Barramundi Dreaming
Three women trying to trap Dayiwul the great barramundi with spinifex nets. This is a traditional method of fishing where by nyiyirriny (river spinifex) is rolled and placed in the water forming a kind of net. Dayiwul was too clever for the women and jumped over the barrier they had laid. She pushed her body through the rock of what is now called Pitt Range. The women gave up and walked to a place called Gawinyji (Cattle Creek) where they turned into rocks.
The scales of Dayiwul embedded in the rock, became the diamonds that are extracted from the Argyle Diamond Mine.
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MERNDABANY (PAPERBARK SPRING), PURNULULU-Eileen Bray;-
Merndabany paperbark spring, This is where my Mother was born at a place called Merndabany(Paperbark Spring) near Purnululu.
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Mistake Creek Massacre – Madeline Purdie
“This story what my old people told me. They told me that they were sleeping here now in this building. Old mister Radigan he as a policeman, white gardier policeman, white man. He was living in this house in the art centre (what’s known the green house). He was the sergeant and he had an employee, this employee was an aboriginal employee from Darwin somewhere. Somewhere that side, NT and this employee for him he went to mistake creek there, where this mob bin having their holiday camp. Everybody used to come to gather from different area out there and holiday camp there. At mistake creek they was having it this time. And all my old people ancestors and anyway… that employee for my Radigan bin trying have an affair with one of these ladies and she said no I already got husband, so he took a sulk. He got angry that she didn’t want to have an affair with him, so he took that pet cow – the police, they had a pet cow with a big bell on it. He took it long way behind that hill and hide it, he tied it up to a tree and he took the bell off the cow and bought it back to sergeant and he said “My boss look here them people there at that holiday camp la mistake creek here them kill you cow and they cooking it up!” but they was cooking kangaroo. They had kangaroo covered up. And he bin go and tell this boss liar and this boss and ‘im bin go back and shoot all them people there… at mistake creek they just go an kill the lot. And they was waiting for their dinner to be cook. Then after he killed them he opened them thing to find that they was cooking five kangaroo’s in there, all that kangaroo. And so all that thing now they just chucked them in the fire. Burnt them. Burnt all the remains for our people them old people that them kill.” – Madeline Purdie