Pictures, Patterns & Objects: Rock-art of the Torres Strait Islands, Northeastern Australia

Description

Positioned at one of anthropology’s most significant boundaries, the Torres Strait Islands and their indigenous inhabitants have fascinated scientists for well over a century. Pictures, Patterns, and Objects explores the rich yet relatively unknown rock-art of the area to investigate Islander artistic expression as an indicator of social interaction. This richly illustrated study employs digital technology to recover rapidly fading rock paintings. Liam M. Brady outlines how Islander and Aboriginal artistic expression is part of a much broader regional sphere that traverses significant social and linguistic boundaries, and argues that patterns of interaction across the hunter-gatherer and horticultural peoples are far more extensive than previously thought.