![]() Map from Explore Mungo (http://www.visitmungo.com.au/explore)
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The Northern Territory holds the earliest dates for human existence in Australia. At around 55,000 years old, the Malakunanja II rock shelter in Arnhem Land is now known as Australia’s oldest site. Archeology provides most of our knowledge of the first people in Australia. Stone tools, rock art made of ochre, charcoal deposits, cooking leftover, and human skeletal remnants are all what remains of human physical activity.
On February 26, 1974, Jim Bowler, a geologist of the Australian National University, extended Australian history by over 20,000 years when he found 40,000-year old remains of a tall human buried in an arid lakebed in southwestern New South Wales. Situated in the Willandra Lakes region, this 200 square kilometre lake dried up about 16,000 years ago. It is said to have existed from 25,000 and 45,000 years ago. The discovery of this ancient human was named Mungo Man after the site it was found at Lake Mungo. Prior to this finding, in 1968 Australian archeologists, including Jim Bowler, discovered the remains of a young and slender female which when discovered were dated approximately 24,000 years old. The discovery of Mungo Man, just 450 meters from the discovery made 6 years earlier, would then almost double the known length that Indigenous Australians had arrived. Accurately dating the Mungo Man turned out to be much harder. It took three universities and the CSIRO to agree that both Mungo Lady and Mungo Man dated about 40 millennial whilst the archeological artifacts around both sites may date as old as 50 millennial. Previously, Lake Mungo’s rainfall was much higher and was a valuable source of food, containing many fish and shellfish for the Aboriginals who lived in that area. Alongside Lake Mungo’s lakeshore were sheltered campsites provided by sand dunes. These sand dunes are more recently known as the Walls of China. To the Aboriginals that lived in that area it was like a paradise to them. The hunters and gathers, adapted to travelling from waterhole to waterhole. Once they’d established they’re semi-permanent campsite, they would be able to relax in the afternoon breezes. Lake Mungo was the home for many extinct animals. There were giant kangaroos, Tasmanian tigers, hairy-nosed wombats and the zygomaturus, an animal resembling a hippopotamus and a wombat. |
Video from Understanding Mungo (http://www.visitmungo.com.au/understand)
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