The Tarkine: Too Precious To Lose

Tarkine’s first people
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The connection of Tasmania’s Aboriginal
people to the Tarkine is reflected in its name.
The region is named for the Tarkinener clan,
who along with the Peerapper, Manegin, and
Peternidic clans lived in north-west Tasmania
for thousands of years before the arrival of
Europeans.
Photo: Tarkine, Dan Broun
The known archaeological record of the
Tarkine, mainly along the wild west coast,
is incredibly rich, and has been described
as “one of the world’s great archaeological
regions”. xi Seal hunting, hut depressions, large
shell middens, artefact scatters, petroglyphs
and quarries for stone tools and ceremonial
ochre are well-documented, and all speak
of the Tasmanian Aboriginal people’s deep
cultural connection with the land and sea.
Other evidence points to a strong interest
in astronomy, the active trade of quarried
materials and valuables across the island, and a
deep spiritual life.
For the Tasmanian Aboriginal people, the
Tarkine is not a wilderness or a museum, but
a landscape shaped by their ancestors over
thousands of years and a living connection
between past and present. The rich cultural
heritage of the Tarkine offers a unique
opportunity to showcase an extraordinary and
sophisticated culture that has lasted tens of
thousands of years. The enduring connection of
the Tasmanian Aboriginal people to the region
is an opportunity for shared collaboration in the
Tarkine’s future management.