First Footprints (Paperback)

Scott Cane

ISBN 10: 1743314930 / ISBN 13: 9781743314937

Published by Allen & Unwin, St Leonards, 2013

About this Item

Paperback. Some 60,000 years ago, a small group of people landed on Australia's northern coast. They were the first oceanic mariners and this great southern land was their new home. Gigantic mammals roamed the plains and enormous crocodiles, giant snakes and goannas nestled in the estuaries and savannahs.First Footprints tells the epic story of Australia's Aboriginal people. It is a story of ancient life on the driest continent on earth through the greatest environmental changes experienced in human history: ice ages, extreme drought and inundating seas. It is chronicled through astonishing archaeological discoveries, ancient oral histories and the largest and oldest art galleries on earth. Australia's first inhabitants were the first people to believe in an afterlife, cremate their dead, engrave representations of the human face, and depict human sound and emotion. They created new technologies, designed ornamentation, engaged in trade, and crafted the earliest documents of war. Ultimately, they developed a sustainable society based on shared religious tradition and far-reaching social networks across the length and breadth of Australia. An exciting and inspiring read. First Footprints will be welcomed by anybody who has ever gazed at an evocative piece of Australian landscape and pondered its unknowable human past.' Newcastle Herald First Footprints tells the extraordinary story of the Aboriginal people of Australia. How they made their way out of Africa 60,000 years ago, and how they survived across this vast continent, from the harsh deserts of the inland to the glaciers of southern Tasmania. With photos from the ABC TV series of the same name. Shipping may be from multiple locations in the US or from the UK, depending on stock availability.

Seller Inventory # 9781743314937

Bibliographic Details

• Title: First Footprints (Paperback)
• Publisher: Allen & Unwin, St Leonards
• Publication Date: 2013
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1743314930
• ISBN 13: 9781743314937
• Binding: Paperback
• Condition: new

About this title

Synopsis

The epic story of Australia's Aboriginal people, as told through astonishing archaeological discoveries, ancient oral histories, and the largest and oldest art galleries on earth

Some 60,000 years ago, a small group of people landed on Australia's northern coast. They were the first oceanic mariners, and this great southern land was their new home. Gigantic mammals roamed the plains and enormous crocodiles, giant snakes, and goannas nestled in the estuaries and savannahs. This is the epic story of Australia's Aboriginal people. It is a story of ancient life on the driest continent on earth through the greatest environmental changes experienced in human history: ice ages, extreme drought, and inundating seas. Australia's first inhabitants were the first people to believe in an afterlife, cremate their dead, engrave representations of the human face, and depict human sound and emotion. They created new technologies, designed ornamentation, engaged in trade, and crafted the earliest documents of war. Ultimately, they developed a sustainable society based on shared religious tradition and far-reaching social networks across the length and breadth of the continent.

About the Author

Scott Cane is a consultant archaeologist and anthropologist. He has spent long periods of time with desert people, including some of the last hunter-gatherers on earth. He is the author of Pila Nguru: The Spinifex People and appears in the ABC TV documentary First Footprints.