| Coordinates WGS84 | 20°42'S, 141°04'E -20.69, 141.07 |
AMus_E013369
Title: A message stick from Oorindi requesting spears, held in the Australian Museum
Description: AMus pdf from 24.01.2023: "Message or letter stick [ref reg] Flat wooden oblong stick, one end rounded, other squared off. Both sides differently decorated. Side A- incised longitudinal lines at one end, then grid pattern, zig-zag pattern on one edge. Side B- 2 angled incised grids, five leafrate shapes at centre infilled with longitudinal lines radiating from central line [ref LC] Condition: Complete. Water stain one side. Mould [ref LC]" Part of an illustration to a fictional series in the Brisbane Telegraph featuring the adventures of Captain Coldweather, Tom Barnacle, Mrs Noah and Bosun Bill. It is likely that this artefact is from the collection of WE Roth, who is cited. Two other artefacts in the same photograph can be positively traced to Roth's collection as illustrated in Roth's 'Ethnological studies among the north-west-central Queensland Aborigines' (1897). The images two artefacts have been merged with the records derived from Roth (1897).
Message: AMus pdf from 24.01.23: “Message or letter stick made by a Boulia (Pitta Pitta) boy at Oorindimindi who ran away from his own people to avoid circumcision etc. He was sending this to tracker Billy (a Maitakudi) at Cloncullt asking him for spears [ref reg];”
Creator of Object: AMus pdf from 24.01.2023: "a Boulia (Pitta Pitta) boy at Oorindimindi who ran away from his own people to avoid circumcision"
Date Created: 1895
Notes on date created: terminus ante quem; AMus pdf date
Item type: message stick in a collection
Subtype: traditional
State/Territory: QLD
Notes on linguistic areas: The origin of the message stick is Oorindi, Mount Isa, Queensland. AMus pdf from 24.01.2023: "Oorindimindi [ref reg]; Oorindimindi, Fullarton River, Queensland [ref LC]; "Oorindimindi" appears to be nolonger in use. Now called "Oorindi" (ref map. LGC 16/05/96)"
Dimension 1: 161mm Dimension 2: 31mm Dimension 3: 7mm
Materials: wood
Source types: museum collection
Date collected: Acquisition date: 1895 Accession date: 23 March 1905
Institution/Holder file: The Australian Museum object identifier: E013369
Collector: Purchased by: Roth, Dr Walter Edmund
Coordinates: 20°41'36.898800"S,141°04'27.400800"E (-20.693583, 141.074278)
Media copyright: The Australian Museum
Notes on coordinates: Absolute coordinates for Oorindi, Queensland, per Google maps. Bonzle: Oorindi is a locality just off the Oorindi McKinlay Road in west Queensland, Australia situated about 1430km west-northwest of Brisbane.
URL source 1: http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article180628845
Media Files:
Data Entry: Julia Bespamyatnykh, Piers Kelly, Nitzan Rotman