Of all the constructions, engravings, paintings and Original sites we have seen, none were more remote or difficult to reach, or ever return to, than the Cave of the Golden Boomerang. Neither Evan or myself could get a fix on any landmark or ridge to cue off, we were totally lost and under the direction of our guides.
They assured us beforehand that this isolated outpost of Original rock art was as unique as it was magnificent, and in both respects this gallery did not disappoint. But even so, we were unprepared for scope, artistry and attention to detail on display. Until stepping into this region and sighting this stone panel of figures in motion and devotion, we had accepted the scholar’s assertion in identifying specific regional Original styles, and that all forms of Original artistic expression cover a broad range, but fall well short when it comes to representational depictions of the human body.
The closest and supposedly only example of any pre-Cook art that verges on the representational is referred to as ‘Bradshaw Art,’ and explanations are varied with some condescending in the extreme. Some commentators, which includes self-proclaimed Kimberleys rock art ‘expert,’ Graham Walsh, are adamant that this form of ancient art is too sophisticated and refined for the crude Original palette. Given that ‘fact,’ Walsh and others assumed that the Bradshaw ochre paintings were created by non-Original people who sailed to Australia, painted in caves, and then departed without a trace or any substantiating historical evidence.
The Cave of the Golden Boomerang