A lesson in time: Yanyuwa ontologies and meaning in the Southwest Gulf of Carpentaria, Northern Australia

The paper considers themes of ontological engagement with place and rock art in Yanyuwa country, in northern Australia. It traces complex interpretations of four sites on Vanderlin Island, the largest island in the Sir Edward Pellew group of islands. Specifically, the paper describes the finding of rock art, created by spiritual entities that are considered, by Yanyuwa elders to be only one day old when recorded in July 2019. By examining this phenomenon through Yanyuwa ontologies and epistemologies and a combined use of linguistics, anthropology, and archaeology it is possible to understand a complex site of interbeing between people, place, and the spiritual entities that are said to dwell in the places being discussed. This is achieved in this paper by demonstrating the profundity of place and the importance of the relational through social relationships and ritual understandings that are seemingly ever present in the country.