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Paper short abstract:

In 1972 in Australia, Yolngu leaders presented ten objects to Mr Justice Woodward, of the Aboriginal Land Rights Commission of Inquiry. Their meanings concern the ownership of Yolngu estates and their historical context: dispossession and despoliation of Yolngu estates by mining.

Paper long abstract:

In 1972 in northeast Arnhem Land, Yolngu clan leaders presented ten objects to Mr Justice Woodward of the Aboriginal Land Rights Commission of Inquiry. The meanings of each gift expressed in the designs concern the ownership of Yolngu estates. They are sacred objects that emblematise the life and history, the sacred narratives and land and sea estates of the respective clans whose elders created them. They are not innocent of the historical context from which they emerged: dispossession and despoliation of Yolngu estates by a mining company. The designs and images on the objects and their meanings are matters of Yolngu law. In 2003, Mr Woodward gifted the collection to The University of Melbourne, where they are managed by the Ian Potter Museum. What is their status now, so many years after the ceremony at Yirrkala in 1973 acknowledging the work of Sir Edward Woodward? They constitute a special case of the Aboriginal work of art as gift and legacy. Yolngu people visited The University of Melbourne to view and discuss these historic objects and other collections. During the visit it became clear that they continued to hold great significance for these Yolngu. They were inspired to consider the use of digital technology to enable access by the descendants of the clan leaders who made them and the wider Yolngu community to see artwork by older generations to inform their art and ritual practices.