Rock Art | Archaeology of Mangrove | Indigenous Astronomy | Lunch at the Thai Garden.

Symposium on the Lower Hawkesbury river bringing together knowledge of rock art, tool making and Australian indigenous astronomy. Bob Pankhurst reveals his life time personal exploration of rock art sites around the valleys and ridges of the hinterland and waterways. Honouring the work of Dr Val Attenbrow hear how tools were made, formed and distributed at the Popran/ Peats Ridge quarry and the Mangrove creek area. Ray Norris, Emeritus professor at CSIRO shares his pioneering work guided by elders to uncover the significance of the celestial emu and interconnections between land and sky.

A light lunch in the Spencer village is specially prepared by the chef of Spencer Thai Mr One. Before the presentations enjoy authentic Thai finger food and noodles in the ambience of the Thai garden at this charming local eatery.

Emu Dreaming
Dr Ray Norris

Ray Norris is well known for his work on the astronomy of Aboriginal Australians, which has featured in many radio and TV programs, including ABC TV's Message Stick, and ABC Radio National's The First Astronomers. Guided by first national elders Ray describes how star maps are a way of travelling information and waypoints in a network of relationship between sky, food and seasonal activity. Ray presents his work on the emu in the sky one of Australia’s most famous dark constellations and how the alignment of the celestial emu relates to position and directionality of emu engravings on the ground citing examples from the Greater Sydney and Central Coast area.

Dr Ray Norris, Emeritus Fellow at CSIRO is an astrophysicist and science communicator who researches the evolution of the Universe, and the astronomy of Aboriginal Australians.

Rock Art Lifetime Research
Bob Pankhurst

Robert 'Bob' Pankhurst has spent the last 60 years exploring areas around the Central Coast on foot and horseback, including Somersby, Mangrove, and the Hawkesbury river for Aboriginal rock engravings. He will share his own experiences of some of the rich Aboriginal engravings, stencils and grinding grooves of the area. Bob has collaborated with traditional knowledge holders, archaeologists and researchers from the indigenous astronomy group to built up comprehensive knowledge of sites around Darkinjung and Guringai country.

Bob Pankhurst is a Central Coast rock art enthusiast who has visited and recorded Aboriginal engraving sites all over the Central Coast.

Archaeology of Mangrove

The large number of Aboriginal sites around the Central Coast including rockshelters with archaeological deposit and pigment images, open rock engraving sites and grinding grooves make it one of the most concentrated locations of rock art outside of the Northern Territory. Excavations have revealed stone artefact sequences dating back 13,000 years in the Mangrove Creek Valley. A significant archaeological site with basalt intrusions has also been investigated at Popran Creek-Peats Ridge. An overview of the significance of these findings will be presented with discussion of the distribution of stone artefacts, tools and weapons. The research honours the ​contribution of Dr Val Attenbrow including her research at and above the Mangrove Creek dam site before its inundation.