Maningrida Arts & Culture

Blanket Square

Blanket Square

Blanket Square

Blanket Square

Blanket Square

Mun-dirra (fish fence) Mun-dirra, in Burarra language, means “fish fence”. Mun-dirra were traditionally made by men using coastal sedge grass called gurdagarra and were designed to fence in schools of fish in ocean shallows or riverbeds. They were used in conjunction with conical traps, called an-gujechiya, which are woven with mirlarl, a hardy jungle vine, and burdaga, Read more…

Marrchila (Saltwater crocdile) Marrchila, ana-munya gu-nirra, gu-bugula a-waywunga a-boya, lika guna-gepiya, a-warrchinga a-rracha a-yurra. Nipa a-weya a-workiya, a-yinaga, “Garr-rru.” The crocodile swims around at night, then after sunrise it climbs up out of the water and lies in the sun getting warm. It always makes a sound, it goes “Garr-rru.” Read more…

Mimih Spirit The mimih spirit exists in a realm that runs parallel to and mirrors many facets of human life, demonstrating the deep sense of time and place understood by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Such spirits feature importantly in relation to Aboriginal spirituality, cosmology, social and moral tales Read more…

Mimih Spirit The mimih spirit exists in a realm that runs parallel to and mirrors many facets of human life, demonstrating the deep sense of time and place understood by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Such spirits feature importantly in relation to Aboriginal spirituality, cosmology, social and moral tales Read more…

Warraburnburn In Burarra and Gun-nartpa languages the figure represented in this artwork is generally known as a wangarra ‘ghost spirit’. For the Warrawarra clan ghost spirits have their own particular characteristics and their own name – Warraburnburn. The Warraburnburn and the closely related Galabarrbarr spirit (owned by the Balkarranga clan) are also manikay song Read more…