David Mullins
Earth ring in Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung
New research reveals more details about earth rings, which are mysterious markings found on hills around the world.
Just outside Melbourne, Australia, there are a series of large rings that mysteriously rise from the hills.
Estes “earth rings”, located in Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung Country, in the suburb of Sunbury, are not natural phenomena. Indeed, they represent large-scale feats of human endeavor. They also represent the ancient and ongoing connection that Aboriginal people have with country.
A new , published in Australian Archeology, presents the results of the unique archaeological excavation known knowledge of one of these rings, combined with the Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung’s knowledge of these enigmatic places.
The research expands our understanding of the richness and diversity of Australia’s archaeological record, created over more than 65,000 years of continuous occupation by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
Secret and sacred initiation and ceremony sites
Were registered earth rings around the worldincluding in England, the Amazon and Cambodia.
People created these rings hundreds or thousands of years ago. They did this by digging and mounding earth into a large circle (or circles) that could measure up to hundreds of meters in diameter.
In eastern Australia, earth rings are understood to represent secret and sacred places of worship. initiation and ceremony for different Aboriginal language groups.
Many earth rings were destroyed after European colonization and development of the land. It is estimated that hundreds of earth rings once existed in New South Wales and Queensland alone. But only about 100 currently remain. A smaller number of rings are documented in Victoria – including five earth rings in Sunbury.
Reading the landscape
The Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung people are the traditional custodians of a large area in south-central Victoria. This area includes much of greater Melbourne and surrounding areas.
In 2021-22, the Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung people led the first study of cultural values of the wider landscape that encompasses the five rings of earth de Sunbury.
For the Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung people, this landscape has immense cultural significance and reflects a deep history of occupation, colonization, resistance, adaptation, self-determination and resilience. It is where the Liwik (ancestors) lived, traveled, gathered and raised successive generations of people.
The Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung people have actively managed this landscape for thousands of years. This is in line with their tradition and customs related to the creator ancestors Bunjil and Waa.
Today, the Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung people continue to have a traditional responsibility for caring for the country. Narrap’s team is currently working to restore and preserve health of this important cultural landscape.
New archaeological excavations
In 2022, the Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung people led a new archaeological excavation of one of the rings, known as Sunbury Ring G.
Sunbury Ring G represents a place where the Liwik traveled and gathered, and of likely ceremony. It is also a highly significant location between the traditional lands of the Marin bulluk and Wurundjeri wilam clans of the Woi-wurrung speaking people, separated by biik wurrdha (also known as Jacksons Creek).
Archaeologist David Frankel first excavated Sunbury Ring G in 1979. To date, no other earthen ring excavation is known in Australia.
The Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung people led the dating and reanalysis of the 166 artifacts of stone found during the 1979 excavations.
This involved the dating of ring deposits to estimate when the ring was made. It also involved reconstructing the artifacts like a puzzle and studying residue and wear patterns on their surfaces and edges. This work provides clues about how Woi-wurrung-speaking people made and used stone tools at Sunbury Ring G.
An old ring
The results of the new study reveal that the Woi-wurrung-speaking people built the ring somewhere ago between 590 and 1400 years. They spent time in the area clearing dirt and plants, scraping soil and rocks to create the ring mound, and arranging rocks in layers to create stone arrangements.
They also lit fires, made stone tools that they used on a variety of plants and animals, and moved objects around the inside of the ring.
Wear patterns and residue on some of the stone artifacts suggest that Woi-wurrung speakers may also have used some of these stone tools to create feather adornments and scars on human skin for ceremonies. This practice has been documented in other parts of Victoria.
The new study is the first to combine cultural and archaeological knowledge about earth rings in Australia and demonstrates the importance of continuing to investigate and preserve these earth rings, as well as others known to occur in eastern Australia. This is especially important in light of ongoing threats from land development and climate change that threaten the survival of Earth Rings.
