Australia: The Land Where Time Began |
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First Boat People
(from First Footprints) See
First Boat
People
The author1 suggests the first settlement
of Australia occurred soon after about 75,000 BP following the Toba
super volcanic eruption in Sumatra that had occurred at that time, the
people travelling to Australia as it was as far as they could travel
from their homeland that had proven to be so dangerous. He1
points out that long before the settlement of Australia
Homo
erectus must have made sea crossings in sufficient numbers prior
to 840,000 BP as by that time they were present on the island of Flores,
Indonesia. Though it is not known how they made the crossings there were
a number of options open to them as even after normal tropical storms
there is plenty of floating vegetation and logs around the Indonesian
islands, and there are also logs that they could have hollowed out, that
in spite of their appearance are actually stable and can't sink.
The author1 describes incidents in his
travels in the more remote parts of Indonesia that demonstrated to him
how surprisingly easy it was to travel by sea in logs that had been dug
out, dugout canoes, often with bamboo stabilisers, even in rough
weather, at least in the hands of a competent user of such watercraft.
He said that these crossings could just as easily have occurred 75,000
years ago, though he points out that there would always have been
hazards involved, the sea being a dangerous place. He suggests that even
in normal times, when there has not been a super-eruption to add to the
normal dangers of life, the dangers of a sea crossing would probably be
no greater, especially to people who spend their lives travelling and
fishing in the waters around their island home in various forms of
primitive watercraft.
[In 1960, when I was working in the Northern
Territory, I was taken for a ride in a dugout canoe that seemed to me to
be very low in the water, in the McArthur River at
Borroloola. There were a couple of Aboriginal adults and a
number of very boisterous children in the dugout. I was the only
passenger who didn't move, watching the tiny amount of freeboard and I
thought it was sure to capsize the way the children were jumping about,
but to my great surprise and relief it remained stable. Apart from not
being a good swimmer I had heard stories about the denizens of the water
in and near the Gulf where a number of people I knew had been fishing
and shooting, but not swimming. MHM]
People had reached Bali from Lombok, the islands
being close enough to each other that one can be seen from the other on
a clear day, but the currents between them are much faster than is usual
for currents in Indonesia, the diurnal current is strengthened by the
prevailing wind, and it is among the strongest currents in the world
reaching speeds of up to 6 knots, or 11 km/hr, and it is made much more
dangerous by such phenomena as 'frightening overfalls, eddies and
windborne turbulence'1. A current of 130 km/day was reported
in 1909.
According to the author1 before the
super-eruption of Toba there are no reasons known that could explain the
push to colonise Australia, given the potential risks of the trip, but
he suggests the aftermath of the Toba eruption could have been the
reason people decided to look for another home. Around 75,000 BP the sea
level was about 60 m, and possibly to 80 m, lower than the present
level, which would have meant that Ashmore Reef would have been about 10
m above sea level, located on the tip of a long peninsula, as much of
the continental shelf along northern Australia was exposed at that time.
Ashmore Reef is 130 km from Timor, and closer to Timor another part of
the continental shelf that formed a large plateau-like island, which was
25 km across, 18 km to the northeast of Ashmore Peninsula, that is 90 km
from Timor, that is 4 times the distance that had already been crossed
in previous inter-island crossings. The author1 suggests that
it is unlikely the first arrivals knew how far Australia was from their
departure point, given that the original travellers were competent, was
only relevant in proportion to that competence. He suggests the critical
elements were probably knowledge, including seamanship, craft,
provisions and timing.
The primary consideration with regards to knowledge
was an awareness that there was in fact another landmass to the south,
likely to have been known because of the strong environmental indicators
At the present the aridity of Australia, that is more than 500 km from
Timor at the present, can be sensed from Timor and the haze at the end
of the dry season can be seen when standing on the south-western tip of
Timor. The weather in Timor is influenced by the Australian continent,
Timor is hotter than further north and there is a pastel orange haze in
the sky. Even at a distance of 500 km the sense of a large, hot landmass
to the south is implicit. The author1 also suggests that when
the distance to Australia was 90 km it must have been possible to smell
Australia. At night the glow of bushfires must have been visible, as
would large smoke-filled clouds in daylight, even at the present dust
from the southeast trades makes visibility poor across the Timor Sea.
Though Australia is too low to be seen, violent thunderstorms may have
been sighted. A clear indication of land to the south would also have
been provided by migratory birds.
It would have been helpful to know the best season
to sail, and to know not to sail in the dry season when the winds and
currents flowed away from Australia. Apart from the risk of storms, the
wet season would have been a better choice, as it is the season when
both winds and ocean currents would generally take any craft towards
Australia, and there would have been rain to provide drinking water.
Another advantage of travelling to Australia in the wet season would
have been plenty of drinking water available when they arrived. In Timor
and the southern Indonesian archipelago the climate was similar to that
of northern Australia, dry in the dry season and wet in the wet season.
There has been speculation concerning the type of
craft that may have been used for the journey. One suggestion is craft
made from bamboo, though in the southern latitudes of Indonesia there is
less bamboo of large size.
Fishermen and coastal foragers in remote parts of
Indonesia use bamboo to carry sweetened rice and water in the natural
compartments of bamboo stems. They can steam the mixture in the bamboo
over fire, though the rice is often pre-cooked, and the author1
suggests that in the past treated rhizomes, nuts and palm sugar may have
also been carried in bamboo, as well as fresh shellfish such as giant
clam. They could have also carried live turtles by leaving them upside
down on the decks.
The author1 suggests tree trunks, lashed
together or singular, modified or not, could have been an alternative
form of sea-faring craft, and possibly some form of propulsion such as
paddles, and/or some form of sail such as bark, large tropical broad
leaves, and single leaves on branches, bound or matted. According to the
author1 the windage of such materials, that are natural and
unmodified, is surprisingly effective. Even at the present people living
in the remoter parts of Indonesia continue to use broad leaves and palm
fronds for down-wind sailing in dugout canoes, and he adds that anyone
who has paddled a stand-up paddleboard into the wind will understand how
effective the windage of the human body is.
At the present the wind and sea conditions are mild
in comparison to typical sea breezes around southern Australia, and
75,000 BP the state of the sea was probably considerably calmer, the
cooler climate having reduced the currents, wind and swell. Between the
Moluccas and New Guinea the present-day current across the Banda Sea
moves at about 20 km/day, which together with a favourable wind would
carry people to land in 3-4 days. A distance of 40 km could be travelled
in a day with a current of 1 knot, therefore the 90 km between Timor and
Australia could have been crossed in 2-3 days by sailing downwind in the
wet season. This becomes more possible as evidence has been recovered
from south-eastern Timor that 42,000 BP coastal fishermen were using
sophisticated fishing technology to catch open ocean fish such as tuna,
which indicates that these ancient people were knowledgeable about the
sea.
According to oral history 9 generations ago, about
200 years, a vessel with a cargo of palm sugar ran ahead of a storm for
5 days which brought them to the open sea, and not knowing where they
were followed sea birds returning to land because they thought that
would bring them to another country where they could get help. They
eventually saw the green reflection on the clouds so sailed on
eventually reaching the western end of Ashmore Reef. As they had no
compass they used the Southern Cross as a back bearing to steer north
and eventually reached their home.
There has been considerable debate about the route
taken by the original settlers of the Australian continent. According to
the author1 the sea crossing to Ashmore Reef was possible. If
they travelled about 50,000 BP the sea level was possibly 20 m higher
and the Ashmore Peninsula as well as its neighbouring islands, would
have been submerged, and the distance to Australia at this time was 200
km, making it more likely a more northerly route via the Moluccas from
Sulawesi to New Guinea was followed. As the actual route(s) followed and
the possible landfall(s) have been submerged for the last 15,000 years
the debate must remain speculation. As it is not possible to know how,
where or exactly when the first people arrived in Australia, the author1
suggests is that what is known is that about 70,000 BP the conditions
were conducive to setting out on such a voyage and the aftermath of the
Toba super-eruption may have provided the incentive needed to leave.
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Author: M.H.Monroe Email: admin@austhrutime.com Sources & Further reading |