First Nations People in Australia employed a wide variety of tools and weapons for hunting and fishing. These methods varied greatly throughout the many different Indigenous cultures of the Australian continent.
The boomerang (seen in each picture), iconic and misunderstood, has likely existed in Australia for over 40,000 years. The key misunderstanding of boomerangs is that they were rarely designed to return to the thrower. Instead, the main function of a boomerang is to hit and kill what it is thrown at. Boomerang designs vary greatly throughout Indigenous Australian cultures, and it is this variation which reflects the social and cultural diversity of Aboriginal people. This diversity includes differences in utility, physical design and aerodynamic ability and in the paintings and engravings found on the boomerang. Commonly considered artworks in and of themselves, boomerangs are highly sought after in Australia today. The hunting tool has remarkable aerodynamic properties, capable of hitting a target from beyond 200 metres with great accuracy. The boomerang would often serve as a multipurpose instrument; utilized for hunting, fighting, agriculture and trading.
The woomera (bottom image), is an ancient technology used to propel a spear with great force, speed and accuracy, similar in design to the Atlatl of the Aztecs. Effectively a sling, the woomera is held in one hand while the other hand places the butt of the spear on the woomera’s hook. The woomera doubles the length of the thrower’s arm, greatly increasing the velocity of the spear. The kinetic energy of a spear launched from a woomera has been calculated as four times that of an arrow launched from a compound bow. Another multipurpose instrument, the tools long and hollow shape allowed the hunter to carry water, vegetables and other small food items. Many woomeras had a sharp stone cutting edge attached to the end of the handle with black gum from the triodia plant. This sharp tool had many uses, such as cutting up game or other food and wood.
Aboriginal peoples catch fish, turtles and stingrays using barbed spears, nets and lines with hooks made from sea shells. The Noongar, for example, are skilled at building circular stone walls in rivers to trap fish. As river levels fluxuate and eventually fall, fish become trapped inside the stone walls, ready to be taken. Aboriginal peoples also place long, narrow baskets of twigs in rivers to trap fish. The baskets are wide enough for fish to swim into the opening, but once inside, the fish could not turn around and escape. The man seen fishing in the bottom image also has a small club, sometimes known as a Nulla Nulla, fastened to his belt.
In the second image, a Luritja man from Australia’s Western Desert demonstrates his stalking ability with two boomerangs and a shield.
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