Ken's Cave and the Art of Central-Western Queensland

Abstract

A date has been obtained for engraved art at a site in central- western Queensland. This may have more general implications for the art of the area.Ken's Cave is a rock-shelter located near the crest of the Great Divide, between the Barcoo and Belyando drainage systems, in central-western Queensland. It occurs at the base of a sandstone cliff of the Precipice Series, and from it a slope of large sandstone blocks descends to a forested sand flat. Here vegetation is predominantly of Black Wattle (Acacia cunninghamii). Narrow-leaved iron-bark woodland (Eucalyptus drepanophylla) is found beyond this on the steep slope down to undulating flats. These are dominated by communities of brigalow regrowth (A. harpophylla), brigalow-blackbutt forest (A. harpophylla-E. cambageana), silver-leaved iron-bark woodland (E. melanophloia), and poplar box grassy woodlands (E. populnea). The present property-owner knows of no water-source close to the site.The site measures 13 by 7m, with a maximum height at the drip-line of 6 m. It faces due west (Fig. l). An occupation deposit is evident at the drip-line, where ash, charcoal, stone tools and bone have been exposed by erosion, and are slumping down a steep, poorly consolidated scarp of sand and talus. A grindstone was also found in situ.On the floor of the shelter, a number of sandstone blocks occur, and engravings occur on five of these. The largest block measures 4 by 2.5 m, with a maximum height of 1 m. This example dominates the shelter, and has a particularly numerous and varied range of engravings upon it (Fig.2). These are present on the large, flat, upper surface, and the three accessible sides of the block. Although pecking is the predominant technique used, motifs have also been executed by battering, by abrasion, and by a combination pecked-then-abraded technique. Traces of pigment can also be discerned; these include a red hand stencil, a red painted outline of a fully pecked, multi-tiered arc, and a white pigment infill of a depply pecked pit. The engravings include cups and rings, and the tracks of emus, macropods and humans. Close examination shows that some older motifs have subsequently been modified or added to.Art also occurs on the rear wall of the shelter. This comprises stencils of hands and feet, boomerangs and axes, simple painted geometric designs, and abraded grooves, cups and rings, and grids. Colours include red, yellow, orange and black, although red predominates. Pecked motifs occur here also, but are infrequent. Certainly there are significant differences between the art on the boulder and the art on the rear wall, both in motif types and frequencies, and the technique favoured.The nature of the talus, and its disposition indicate that all was derived from the shelter roof, and that the art on the boulder and on the shelter wall, must have been executed after the fall. A preliminary investigation also revealed that the occupation deposits had probably been deposited prior to the rock fall. An initial test pit and subsequent excavation have confirmed this.A 50 cm2 test pit was excavated on the SW corner of the boulder. Excavation was by 10 cm levels, or by natural layers, whichever was the smaller. All material was sieved through 9, 5 and 2 mm sieves. Four occupation layers were distinguished, with Layers 2 and 3 being separated by a lens of small rock fall talus, which could be traced beneath the large boulder. Since the deposits beneath the minor fall must have been deposited before the collapse of the over-lying boulder, a carbon sample from layer 3 was submitted for dating. This yielded a date of 1380 ± 70 BP (ANU 1853). Subsequent excavations have shown that all occupation layers were deposited prior to the fall of the large boulder. Thus the date obtained, represents an absolute maximum age, both for the art on the boulder, and on the shelter wall. It is probable then, that the major rock fall heralded a change in site function, as no deposits postdate this event. This change may have been from occupation shelter to mortuary area, as there are still human bones and burial cylinders in crevices and tubes adjacent to the site.