Monday 5th July 2021
Today we left camp and travelled East to a place called Anbangbang.
Anbangbang is Warramal Clan land. All off the Clan has since passed. The land is now being cared for by neighbouring clans.
Archeological evidence dated people living in the area back 22,000 years.
We meet with our ranger guide who appeared either drunk or high. He couldn’t string a sentence together and shed no light on anything. With comments like ‘I don’t really know what’s going on here..’ it was a great disappointment.
Lightening man
This rock art depicts Namarrkon (pronounced narm-arr-gon). Namarrkon is an important creation ancestor who is responsible for the violent lightning storms that occur every tropical summer.
The band running from Namarrkon’s left ankle to his hands and head and down to his right ankle represents the lightning he creates. He uses the axes on his head, elbows and feet to split the dark clouds and make lightning and thunder.
Lightening Dreaming – Namarrgon Djadjam
This is a series of 3 pillars, seen along the escarpment, and is the home of Namarrgon, Lightening Man.
On Namarrkon’s last journey, he approached the Arnhem Land escarpment from the east and looked over the sheer wall.
He took out an eye and placed it high on the cliff at Namarrkondjahdjam (Lightning Dreaming), where it sits waiting for the storm season.
During the buildup to the tropical summer, Kakadu is visited by huge numbers of Namarrkon’s children – the alyurr, or Leichhardt’s Grasshopper. Feeding on the pityrodia plant, the alyurr call to their father, who answers with powerful storms and lightning displays.
Namanjolg’s Feather – Daberrg
To the Aboriginal people, this rock formation is not any ordinary rock but a site that represents the incest law that was broken by Namanjolg and his sister.
To punish Namanjolg, the family sought out for him and found him dancing around a fire on top of this Feather Rock.
He was pushed into the fire. Covered with ash, Namanjolg plunged into a billabong and became a crocodile.
The Feather Rock is an example to convey a message to educate the Aboriginal people that it is wrong to involve in incestuous relationship.
The distant rock outcrop is the feather which Namanjolg’s sister took from his head-dress after they had broken the incest laws.
She placed it here to show what they had done.
She is now the rainbow serpent.
Other Artworks
Tomorrow
We move to Kakadu Lodge at Jabiru.
morrisblog.travel.blog 