Yab-yade-gerni-ngim

This is a key dreaming story for the Miriwoong and Gadjerriwoong people for the ownership of country around Kununurra and to the east. In this area a freshwater spring flows into a creek called Gilijing which empties into the Keep River.Near here there is a ridge where the plains kangaroo (Jarlangarnang - a Miriwoong man) fought the hill kangaroo (Nyangood - a Gadjerriwoong man) in the dreamtime. Up on the ridge at Yab-yade-gerni-gnim, the hill kangaroo put his hands in the ground to get sugarbag - wild honey but didn't tell the plains kangaroo that the sugarbag was hidden just inside, so when he looked there was nothing. Then they started fighting all over the ridges and in the fight each threw a big spear (Gananmoorroong). The spears got stuck in them which became their tails and they became the two different types of kangaroo. The plains kangaroo said 'this is not your place. This is Miriwoong country.' So the hill kangaroo followed the ridges back to Gadjerriwoong country. The circles in this work indicate the areas in which the dreamtime argument occurred.

Note: This etching is number 49 of an edition of 50. The three plates for this etching were created during a workshop conducted by Northern Editions at Waringarri Aboriginal Arts in April 2008.

Code: ML0810
Artist: Minnie Lumai
Exhibition: Miriwoong Etchings
Dimensions: 25 x 25 cm image
Medium: 3 plate etching

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