The Dugong Boy Story

That Dugong he been come from up that way, north and east from Bamaga, and came down to that place on top of Mornington Island. When he got there, he bin a young fella and broke the law of that place. He bin go with that girl and those people they cut him up and threw him into the sea and all the pieces and turned him into a rock.

That place today is called Dugong story place, and he is the malkiri spirit of that place there today. All the rocks are in the shape of the correct way to cut up a dugong– tribal way. That is my country from Nithaman to Bekalea all the way up to Dadugun.

- (as told by Ian Jones) Biyal

The Evening Star Woman Story

In the Dreamtime, Ngarijan, the Evening Star Woman, was promised by tradition to the Sharkman.
Ngarijan was not very keen on the Sharkman and did not want to marry him. When the time came for the wedding ceremony where they were to be joined, Ngarijan ran away from him. But the Sharkman wasn't about to let her go that easily. He chased her through the country, following her tracks and getting closer to catching up with her. Ngarijan finally reached the sea. She looked behind and saw that Sharkman had caught up with her and was about to catch her. She fled into the sea and started swimming further and further out to sea. The Sharkman was still following her and was now swimming towards her. He was very fast in the water. Ngarijan, desperate not to be caught, then flew up into the sky and she became the Evening Star which you see every evening close to where the sun sets.

The Sharkman is now a shark and you can still see him occasionally searching for the Evening Star Women in the waters around Mornington Island.

Thuwathu The Rainbow Serpent Story

Thuwathu, after travelling a long way, was resting near the mouth of the Dugong River under his humpy. His little sister Bulthuuku, a little bird, came and asked him for shelter for her and her baby because a big storm was coming.
 
He said, No! I don’t have room here, my tail is there.
But what about over there? asked Bulhuuku.
No! no! I need that for my belly.
But what about over there?
No! no! my head is there.
But what about my baby?
I don’t care, this my humpy, you go away!

The big storm came and little Bulthuuku and her baby got wet and the baby got sick and died. Buthuuku was very angry and wanted revenge on her brother because he had refused them shelter. She made a bark torch and went up behind him while he was sleeping and set fire to his humpy. She lit it all around. He was asleep, then he cried out because he was burning. He crawled out of his humpy and went down to the beach and crawled around pushing up the sand and the rocks on the way as he tried to rub off the burnt part of his belly. He made the Dugong River then he went on crying out and rubbing himself, moving rocks and earth. He came out at Bandiga then went underground and came out on the other side at Wirrijudda. All the people were crying for him, cutting them selves with Ballast stones because they felt so sorry for him. He was so sick and hurting that he then decided to go up to the sky. Now you see him up in the sky as the many different colours of the rainbow.

The Creation of Mornington Island

The first men and woman to come to Australia were Marnbil, Djin-djin and Dewallewal. Djin-djin was married to Marnbil and Dewallewal was Djin-djin’s uncle. Marnbil and Dewallewal did not speak to each other because Dewallewal called Marnbil son-in-law. That is aboriginal law. So they had to speak to each other through Djin-djin. These three people made a raft out of logs and sailed around Australia, making the land, creating all the rivers, hills, animals, trees, wells and making fish traps. They gave each animal a sacred place and name and made ceremonies for them, so that they could be protected.

When they came to the land which is now Mornington Island (it was not separated then) they dug a well and stayed there resting for one month, until a certain kind of fish called dulnhu came along the shores. After a month Marnbil called to his wife and said ,”Tell your uncle to go that way around, naming rivers and trees and animals and we will go the other way. Marnbil and Djin-djin set out and made fish traps to catch turtles and dugong and Djin-djin was picking up food like shell fish and oysters. When they arrived at the end of the land, Marnbil told his wife to wait for him there because he had to go and do one more bit of work. After a while Dewallewal, who went up the windward side, had finished his work and arrived at the end of the land where he saw Djin-djin sitting cooking some food.

Where’s your husband? He asked Djin-djin.
“He’s gone on a long journey” she replied.

Now Dewallewal did not have a wife of his own so he decided to steal Djin-djin, thinking that Marnbil wouldn’t know. But when Marnbil came back he started talking from a long way off. Marnbil knew that Dewallewal had broken the law and he knew that Dewallewal had stolen Djin-djin, so he had to kill him. Tell your uncle to dig a well for me, I’m thirsty after a long journey. So Djin-djin told her uncle and when Dewallewal got water, Marnbil said for Dewallewal to drink first. Marnbil wounded Dewallewal with a spear in his backside. Dewallewal first circled around the well in pain then shot straight up into the sky still with the spear stuck in his back and singing a curse.

You will die of stone
You will die of bone
You will die of spear
You will die of eating hot food…..

He caused man to die from all things, before that, man had been immortal. But Dewallewal’s curse meant that they would die. Marnbil and Djin-djin were frightened and ran away into the scrub, but then it began to rain and rain. The lands began to break up and open and salt water rushed in. That was how Mornington Island was formed and Marnbil and Djin-djin had nowhere to run. Their feet got stuck in a rock and their bodies got stuck too. You can still see them changed into rocks, at low tide, but no one should go to that place because it is sacred.

Sea-eagle

He went fishing and caught some long-toms. “Oh dear! What am I going to do?” he said. He went to look for some wood to make firesticks. He started to make the firesticks. He kept on working on them until they were ready to rub together. He rubbed and rubbed the sticks until he got a spark. He took some kindling and lit it and made a fire and took one cooking stone to start with. He kept on adding more stones until it was right and put some fish on the stones to roast them. He kept on roasting them until they were cooked on one side. He added another lot of cooking stones. He kept on adding more cooking stones until he had roasted the fish. He roasted more again, and another lot again until he had finished. Then he sat down and rested for a while. He kept sitting there waiting and then he said, “Ah, let me take then out now, I’m very hungry”. He kept on taking them out and then he ate one. He was eating it, but it got stuck in his throat. “No! This is too hard for me! It’s stuck in my throat! What am I going to do?” And he started to take another one out. He took it and found it was still raw and he started eating it raw and it was just right. “Ah! I’ll do this now, I won’t cook my fish on the fire, I’ll eat them raw”, he said. Then he started thinking again. “This place is no good! Let me make my home by the sea”. So he made his home by the sea away from the land. He started making a nest but it was a little bit high. He finished it. After he made it he thought, “Yes, this will do”.

- Nangwurruma Wurrawilya

Yimenda Hunting Story, Joaz Wurramara

This painting is a story George Wurramara told his son Joaz when he was a young boy.

The men of the tribes were going out hunting for turtle Yimenda, so they could bring back meat for their families.The men are from all different tribes. They did not know the weather was brewing. The water started to get angry, the waves got bigger, and the men were all in this small area with the turtles. The men did not know what to do except save themselves from the storm. The waters were looking after their turtles. So now a days we have to be careful hunting turtles because the water and the sea can get angry. The markings on the top and bottom of background represent calm water. Markings in centre background represent the angry water. The wavy boarder shows the moving water, with the dots in these waves being shells and coral in sand. Blotches outside boarder are clouds meaning danger. The pattern inside turtle body represent the tribes that hunt the turtle. Markings on the figures mean hunger, these men have come straight from a ceremony and are ready to go out and hunt turtle Yimenda, food for their families. The Markings represent all tribes, red and black-the Amagula, Wurramarrba and Mamarika Clan and the yellow and white - the Wurramara Clan.

Angurugu River Creation, Alfred Lalara

Alfred has painted his ancestors story about the Angurugu River creation.

The Sawfish is the totem creator with Stingray of the Angurugu River. They began their journey with Central Hill yandarrnga from the east coast of Arnhem Land. On their way to Groote Eylandt they stopped at Bickerton Island, transforming themselves from human beings to sea creatures. They journey to Groote. On the way they agreed to go to the centre of the Eylandt. Central Hill, however decided to centre from the north, but Sawfish said, “I’ll take a short cut”. After Central hill left him, Sawfish set of with a crowd of many different stingrays, all traveling together, and following on after him. Sawfish lead the way, probably because he was the biggest. Sawfish reached Groote, came out of the sea, and started to cut his way through the land, using his teeth and nose, as he went. So he made the river bed of the Angurugu River, cutting out the land and throwing the earth aside, opening a way for himself. As the water came in, the dirt was stirred up and Lirreba and tide grew bigger, following on close behind Sawfish. Then came all the different stingrays, still following behind Sawfish as he led the way.