This label displays a painting found in the Kimberley sector of Western Australia. Collectively, these paintings are known as Gwion Gwion, or the Bradshaw paintings.
The remote coastline of northwestern Australia was probably the first landing site on this continent, as groups of our early ancestors crossed by boat from Timor up to 60,000 years ago. Some members of these groups were assigned the task of recording their myths and beliefs, their hopes and fears, by painting on the rocks. This extraordinary art is among the earliest figurative paintings ever created. Yet, some of the works are so delicate and the lines so precise that to accurately copy them today requires the talent of a calligraphy master.