XXVI Congreso Internacional de Americanistas

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faets strongly point to an indigenous origin III Australia. L astly we
fine! in the throwing-sticks (not to be confusee! with spear-throvvers) a
most reasonable prototype from which boomerangs coule! have been deriVed
in Australia. Not only are throwing-sticks more simple but by
virtue of their appearance 111 T asmania they appear to be much the
olcler.
Boomerangs have also been foune! in New Zealane! ancl as a result
this iegion is also inc1uded by Rivet in the early distribution of the
Australians. How'her it appears that the few specimens which have
come to light are typically modern and in the opinons of many represent
souvenil's brought home and lost by white or Maori sailol's, travellers or
visitors to Australia within historie times.
Stone Spea,rh.eads.-Thc quartzite knives anc1 spearheacls of the AU:3­
tralians submitted by Rivet as historically related to the similarly shapecl
ancl usee! obsidian blae!es of the Admiralty Islands occupy a limited
ditribution in Australia which extends from western Quecnsland to
llortheastern Western Australia and hom northern South Australia to
the coast of North Australia (Davidson, VI). This distribution, however,
~ee m s to have been but recently altained. At least we have ethnologieal
evidence that there has been a diffusion, which incidentally still continues,
from western North Australia to the north, east and south. It
is important to note for al! regions but particularly for the coastal country
of North Australia that although suitable stone is available the local
na ti ves e!o not attemp to manufacture these hlades but import them
ready macle from the interior. There has b(en IiUle archaeological investigation
in this area but in a few excavations of eoastal shel!heaps these
blacles have not appeared. In the interior, on the other hand, rack shelter
and cave floors in the Kathevine River-Vietoria River district have been
founcl to contain them in abundance, except in the lowest levels of the
deposits some of which are four feet deep. It appears lherefore that
these blades have but recently reached the coastal country from the
interior, and unless thi s conclusioll is reversed by facts oecured by more
extensive excavations in this region, an origin inc1igenous to the continent
wil! be indicated.
U n the basis of present evidence, therefore, we eannot assign these
blades any great antiquity in Australia nor, in view of the facts, can we
support the eontention that there is a historical relationship behveen
them ancl the obsidian blac1es of the Ac1miral ty Islanc1s, 2,500 miles distant
by water. If it couJd be shown that these blades, contrary to data,
actuall)' die! diffuse inlane! from the coast it would appear in view of
their limited e!istribution and the evidence fol' beJieving them to be of
relatively recent appearance that theil' presence is not the result of a
{orl1ler greater distribution of Australians as c1ail1lcd by Rivet, but the