How old is old looking? The Dampier petroglyphs in review

• Autores: Ken Mulvaney
• Localización: Préhistoire, art et sociétés: bulletin de la Société Préhistorique de l'Ariège, ISSN 1954-5045, Nº. 65-66, 2010-2011 (Ejemplar dedicado a: L'art pléistocène dans le monde), págs. 176-177
• Idioma: inglés
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• Resumen

  • In public forum, the age of the Dampier Archipelago petroglyphs of the Pilbara region of northwest Australia is cited as in the order of 25-30,000 years. Clark (1978), based on the presence of a mineral coating (desert varnish), believed that a component of the rock art must be older than 17,000 BP. Others, including Lorblanchet (1983, 1992), assessing the weathered appearance and degree of patination, certainly regard the petroglyphs as having a Pleistocene antiquity. In this paper, the pattern of weathering is assessed in relation to the lithology (gabbro and granophyre) on which these petroglyphs are produced, and motif subject and stylistic range exhibited. Based on associated data, including archaeological information, climatic and environmental factors, and ethnographic parallels, the Dampier petroglyphs are placed into a temporal sequence that likely spans the late Pleistocene and Holocene.