Stories told by Indigenous Tasmanians to white settler appear to describe the flooding of Bass Strait , which take place 12,000 years ago , as well as the placement of the stars at a similar time . Records of Tasmania ’s Indigenous oral custom are short , but with the elision of some much more speculative connection , these appear to be the oldest know accounts draw genuine upshot .
When British settlers arrived in 1803 , the Palawa ( Indigenous Tasmanians ) had lived in almost total isolation since the flooding of Bass Strait , which divide Tasmania from mainland Australia , at the end of the last glacial maximum . Besides being particularly vulnerable to outside diseases , the Palawa suffer one of the most taxonomical extermination campaigns of indigenous multitude anywhere , with most aboriginal inhabitants either hit or expatriate to Flinders Island .
George Augustus Robinson was assigned to “ liaise ” between the invaders and the hoi polloi being round out up . While not an anthropologist , he did record some of the culture he was helping ruin , and Robinson ’s accounts include what seem to be story of the flooding that reduce Tasmania off from mainland Australia .
Even after much of Bass Strait was underwater, a landbridge allowed passage to the mainland. That ended by 12,000 years ago.Image Credit: Hamacher et al./Journal of Archaeological Science
Since the detachment occurred 11,960 and 12,890 years ago this would require stories to have been hand down for 400 - 600 generations .
Appropriately , a title that orotund has been address with disbelief by anthropologist , but an interdisciplinary squad led byDr Duane Hamacherof the University of Melbourne has now provided several pieces of hold up evidence that the collective memories of the Palawa people stretched back that far .
Besides the references to Tasmania ’s closing off , Robinson also took down consultation to a bright star in the south that did not move , as part of a story that recounted the family relationship between Moeherne and Droemerdeenne , star children of the Sun and Moon . He was clearly very puzzled by this , queer out and interchange the star children ’s names .
Top, star map drawn by Jackson Cotton based on his memories of one in his great grandparents' diaries, which was supposedly initially drawn in sand by Indigenous friends. Bottom: the brightest stars in the sky 14,000 years ago.Image credit: Hamacher et al/Journal of Archaeology. Top from Jackson Cotton, bottom Stellarium
For a star to not appear to move it needs to be close to a supernal pole . Currently , that ’s the typeface forPolarisin the Northern Hemisphere , making it a wanted asset for lose travelers throughout the Northern Hemisphere , but there is no hopeful tantamount near the South Celestial Pole .
However , Hamacher and co - source have provided a plausible account : the story comes from a prison term when the star Canopus was much further south in the sky . Crucially , the meter when the story could have been rightful was around 12,000 year ago , making them very exchangeable in age to the flooding of Bass Strait .
No promising star has been as close to the South Celestial Pole as Polaris is to the north for a very long metre , but 12,000 years ago Canopus was close enough to do the job . Being the 2d brightest star in the sky , then and now , Canopus would also have stand out far more than Polaris does and look to move only marginally through the night . Despite Robinson ’s mental confusion as to which stars the taradiddle associate to , Hamacher head out that if the other fundamental form reported was Sirius , the story almost absolutely describe the brightest star at the meter the Bass Strait flooded .
Although the precedency of the Earth ’s axis , the reason Canopus has move by 25 degree in the intervening prison term , was known to European scientists long before Robinson , there is no grounds he was aware of it . Therefore , it is very unbelievable he adjust the tales he was recording to make them primed .
In addition to Robinson ’s account , Hamacher and co - authors also looked into the notes made by Francis and Anna Marie Cotton , Quakers who claim to have supported Palawa and show their story . historiographer handle these with great distrust , both because the Cottons appear to have exaggerated how skinny they were to Palawa survivors – possibly inventing some fictitious source – and because the original tone were lose in a housefire in 1959 . A descendant , Jackson Cotton , reconstructed them in the 1960s , claiming to have record them so often he could remember every detail , but the reliability of his memory board is questioned .
However , Jackson Cotton provides a adept map that , while more detailed than what Robinson identify , is reproducible with both Robinson ’s and the positions of the bright southern stars 12,000 years ago . While recognise the inquiry marks over the Cottons ’ account , Hamacher points out it would be doubtful the Cottons would have been aware of the genius ’ ancient positions , get transmissible stories the most likely germ for the map .
agree to Hamacher the flooding of Bass Strait was such a tragedy for the Palawa it ’s unsurprising it was broadcast in memory . Besides cutting the Palawa off from mainland Australia , it also probably be them their good search ground . “ The inner part of Tasmania is not very hospitable , ” Hamacher tell IFLScience . “ People were live on the land bridge and got pushed to Tasmania , which created all sorts of job . ” The universe is believed to have go down with the separation , and never fully recover .
A southerly star , even one as brilliant as Canopus , does n’t seem as obviously meaning , but Hamacher told IFLScience , “ It would have been an idealistic sailing ace , as Polaris ( which Polynesian cultivation call ‘ the mavin that does n’t move ’ ) is . It would have been an accurate tool to get hold your way south , unlike now when you have to triangulate . ”
Hamacher say he is not mindful of account from mainland Australia , or other southerly continents for that affair , that echo a time when Canopus barely make a motion . However , he thinks this is as likely to contemplate a failure of anthropologist to record these taradiddle as them not having survived since it would have been just as useful a guide for other Southern Hemisphere peoples .
The Cotton diaries also let in accounts of what appear to be berg float by . The waters around Tasmania today are far too warm for such a good deal . However , Tasmania ’s deal had glaciers not long before Bass Strait flooded , and these may have carve gravid auction block of ice into the island ’s river . Hamacher told IFLScience he is not certain if the more extensive Antarctic ocean ice of the period could also have lead to icebergs within sight of Tasmania .
Even prior to Hamacher ’s workplace , the idea that the accounts Robinson take in were tangible has been bolstered by evidence that report of other ancient floods have been passed on for impressive period . For example , avolcanic eruptionand rising seasisolating an islandare both recorded in stories from different share of Queensland .
It has been proposed the Gunditjmara mass of Western Victoria ’s stories of ancient titan refer to a volcanic eruption37,000 year ago , but Hamacher describe this to IFLScience as “ Not very solid . They might have worked out what happened without witness it ” . It has also been suggest that global references to the Pleiades as birth seven members recalls a prison term 100,000 old age ago when it was easier todistinguish Pleione from Atlas , but this relies even more heavily on guesswork .
Consequently , if Robinson and the Cottons ’ track record really record stories go out back 12,000 geezerhood they have a strong case to be the oldest hold out human tales .
The study is open admission in theJournal of Archaeological Science .
[ H / TAustralian Geographic ]
