A Lardil songman's headdress, last seen on Australian soil in the 1970s, is again on country after five decades in the United Kingdom. Elders say the reunification offers them hope other cultural artefacts can be tracked down and returned.
A member of the Mornington Island Dancers wears a traditional headdress during a performance in Burketown."The headdress is important to me because when I was growing up, the old fella was a great cultural teacher," Mr Burke says.
Crafted from paperbark, human hair and emu feathers, the shape of the headdress symbolises the rainbow serpent. "It is worn to represent a boy transitioning into manhood. It is also used to show what totem clan you're from and it's really important for ceremonies and corroborees.While the return of the headdress was celebrated by Mr Burke, there remain hundreds of thousands of culturally important items lost to Indigenous groups around the country."The biggest problem on Mornington now is in regards to a story place where a rock was taken.
AIATSIS has identified more than 110,000 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander objects in overseas collections. Meanwhile, about 300 collecting institutions are holding Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander material."I urge anyone who wishes to return Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artefacts to contact AIATSIS. Be assured that it will be a significant gesture and that the artefact will be treated with great respect and care."
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