National Archaeology Week Seminar Program
Saturday 21 May 2011
10.00am – 2.30pm
Theatrette
10:00am Welcome
10:15 am The Jawoyn rock art project: 2005-2010
R.G (Ben) Gunn, Consultant
The Jawoyn rock art project is one aspect of the Jawoyn Cultural Heritage Programme that began as an initiative of the Jawoyn Association to document as much of Jawoyn culture as was possible for both heritage and educational purposes. To date we have recorded 900 sites from over 100 site complexes.
10.45am Macassan shipwrecks off the North Australian coast; are there any left?
Paul Clark, Curator, Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory
During the pre-colonial and early colonial period of Australia’s history c.1700 ~ 1900, monsoon traders from the eastern part of Indonesia sailed in small ships to parts of Australia’s northern coast in the search of marine products for the Chinese market place. This presentation explores the possibility of finding the remains of one of those wrecked vessels.
11:15 - 11:45am Break (30min)
11.45am The Frances Bay shipwreck: the search for identity
David Steinberg, Maritime Archaeologist, Heritage Branch, Dept. NRETAS
In 2009 local divers notified the Heritage Branch that they had discovered an historic shipwreck in Frances Bay, Darwin Harbour. An archaeological survey identified a significant wreck with wood framing, copper sheathing and an early propulsion engine. This presentation will detail the detective work, still ongoing, that will hopefully lead to uncovering the wreck’s identity.
12.15 pm Cross-cultural commerce at the Sue Wah Chin -the pre-WWII years
Dr Patricia Bourke Heritage Branch, Dept. NRETAS
An archaeological dig at the rear of the heritage-listed Sue Wah Chin Building reveals aspects of early 20th Century Chinese occupation and Darwin life not available from archival sources. Artefacts recovered provide a tangible reminder of illicit commerce between Aboriginal and Chinese people, hinted at in archives and local newspapers.
12.45 – 1.30pm Break (45min)
1:30 pm Shock and Awe: Archaeological investigation of WWII bomb crater sites in the Darwin CBD.
Dr. Silvano Jung, Archaeological consultant, Principal – Ellengowan Enterprises
19 February 1942 is remembered as the date of first air raid on Darwin by the Imperial Japanese Navy and Air Force, 68 years later bomb crater sites are still being discovered in the Darwin CBD. This talk will examine how archaeologists examine and diagnose features of bomb craters, using a 22 meter diameter crater site found in 2010 as a field example
2:00pm Panel session: Managing archaeological resources in the Northern Territory
2:30pm END
