Reviewed by Patricia Simms-Reeve
The oral history of the Yolngu people of East Arnhem Land is reimagined in a fascinating telling of the times before Cook, in the late 17th century. The authors combined to produce a book that is a vibrant depiction of life in this area of which so little is known of the daily routines and customs. Even today it remains remote and, in many ways, untouched, some would argue unspoiled, by the outside world.
Life for the original inhabitants was vastly distinct from that of the foreigners, of the colonial nations. To them, the land is sacred and it is an alien concept for them to regard it in terms of ownership. It is this regard and respect that led to their care of the environment.
In the true tradition of the hunter/gatherer, their diet consisted of harvesting yams, water lilies, wild berries and fruit with additional delicacies of goanna and snake. The catch from the sea offered a plentiful variety – oysters and shellfish, turtle, dugong and a variety of fish. Cooking utensils were leaves and bark, implements honed from trees like the ironwood, decorative ornaments from plaited palm and feathers. The women cooked. Details are shared of the clever control of fire and heated stones to produce the tasty meals they all enjoyed. The men hunted and were both lawmakers and guardians.
One interesting example of their ingenuity is the ‘timer’ which was a coconut shell, hollowed but with a hole in the base. Filled with sand it steadily emptied to give say, half a shell before the cooking item had to be turned. There are skilled tricks to harvesting the pandanus fruit and each of these is learned by eager young girls, longing to be good wives and mothers.
Ceremonial rites marking the passing into adulthood, giving birth, and other serious stages in a girl’s life are not overshadowed by the games and lighthearted antics of childhood. Songs are learned and sung for almost every activity.
Initially the arrival from, mostly Sulawesi, of the foreigners to trade in trepang (sea cucumbers) is peaceful until the greedy ruthless Zyad comes to destroy the harmony of trade and mutual respect. He seeks to exploit the Yolngu, particularly the young children,
The novel’s narrative focus is on Garritji, a beautiful young girl on the cusp of womanhood. This gives a fresh and lively touch to the tribe’s lives and the events that enhance the everyday. One of the most delightful is the children’s joy in watching a kite flying for the very first time.
The impressive aspect of A Piece of Red Cloth is the facts that I learned of the Yolngu way of life. Not just dealing with the essentials but the philosophy of their relationship to the world and skies, the laws, the ceremonies and the skills they must acquire from their earliest years. There was a strong belief in connections with the past.
Their good relations with the foreign traders were disastrously affected by Zyad and his introduction of opium and alcohol. This destroyed the relative ease of life in their community, brought unheard of violence, rapes and fighting.
The authors’ ability to combine seamlessly to write this enthralling document of social history is a fine achievement. Oral history may change as it moves through the generations, but the fact remains that it is a significant contribution to our knowledge of indigenous life before the influence of colonialism that drastically altered a way of life that had endured for millennia.
A Piece of Red Cloth
[2025]
by Leonie Norrington, Merrkiyawny Ganambarr-Stubbs, Djawa Burarrwanga, & Djawundil Maymuru
Allen and Unwin
ISBN 978 176147 131 5
$34.99; 384pp