The Reconciliation or Acceptance Story

In the 1930s there was a decision made by my clan to accept a little girl, my Auntie Ruby, into their midst, even though she had a lighter coloured skin. We called this event the Reconciliation or Acceptance Story. 

First of all my Auntie Ruby, when she was old enough to understand, was asked to put her handprint in a cave to symbolise her acceptance into the clan. A hand stencil was made to give the hand's true shadow and to record that she was there. (Aunt Ruby's hand is the first on the left.) The stencil was made by blowing ochre through a hollowed bone to create the spray effect. Thagu, the left hand, was used as this is generally regarded as a person's signature, and because it is the peaceful hand; whereas nganhthirr, the right hand, is generally the first used in anger.

Then the artist and the story-teller sat down to document the event. They had to find a symbol they could paint to represent the story. So in a cave close to the handprint cave, they painted a big fish to symbolise the good decision made.

The reason they painted a fish is because when fish are swimming they sometimes turn and reflect the light. This is called gandal. Light has always been the symbol of spirituality, where good spirits are found. Darkness is where the bad spirits linger. So the reflection of the fish reminds us of how we should be accepting of all people, regardless of skin colour or culture.

You can see the big fish and the handprints, and hear more about the Reconciliation Story, on our Rainbow Serpent Tour.

Cooktown & The First Reconciliation

The Aboriginal Family: Moieties & Marriage

Yirmbal, the Creation Story

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Cooktown & The First Reconciliation

HMB Endeavour replica (Photo: ANMM)

Did you know that the First Reconciliation between Aboriginal Australians and Europeans took place here in Cooktown nearly 250 years ago?

Lt James Cook's meeting with members of my tribe, the Guugu Yimithirr, at Gungardie where Cooktown now stands, is now recognised as the first recorded reconciliation between Indigenous Australians and Europeans. 

I have told this story from our own perspective in 'Cooktown - a small town whose history changed the world'. Now here's the story from the viewpoint of Lt James Cook and Sydney Parkinson - and from Emeritus Professor of History at ANU, John Molony.

HMB Endeavour careened (Tim Johnson)

In June 1770, Cook careened his damaged ship, HMB Endeavour, on the banks of Wahalumbaal Birri (now called Endeavour River) after it was holed on the Reef. He and his crew spent nearly 7 weeks here carrying out repairs, meeting the local Guugu Yimithirr on many occasions. This was the first time Cook had ever met Aboriginal people. Although he had seen Aborigines during his week's stay In Botany Bay, they had not been interested in making contact and seemed terrified of the whites, suggesting Cook was not the first white person they had encountered and that previous experiences had been violent.

In contrast, Cook's encounter with the Guugu Yimithirr at Gungardie was open and based on trust - the amicable relationship marred only by the refusal of Cook and his men to share the many turtle they caught. The story of the resulting hostilities, and the reconciliation which followed, is told in the in the Journals of Lt James Cook and Sydney Parkinson.

Cook's Journal, 19 July 1770

James Cook

“In the AM we were visited by 10 or 11 of the natives the most of them came from the other side of the River where we saw six or seven more; the most of them were women and like the men were quite naked; those that came on board were very desirous of having some of our turtle and took the liberty to haul two to the gangway to put over the side; being disappointed in this they grew a little troublesome, and were for throwing everything over board they could lay their hands upon; as we had no victuals dress’d at the time I offer’d them some bread to eat, which they rejected with scorn as I believe they would have done anything else excepting turtle – soon after this they all went ashore Mr Banks and myself and five or six of our people being a shore at the same time.  Emmediately upon their landing one of them took a handful of dry grass and lighted it at a fire we had a shore and before we well know’d what he was going about he made a large circuit round about us and set fire to the grass in his way and in an instant the whole place was in flames, luckily at this time we had hardly any thing ashore besides the forge and a sow with a litter of young pigs one of which was scorched to death in the fire – 

as soon as they had done this they all went to a place where some of our people were washing and where all our nets and a good deal of linen were laid out to dry; here with the greatest of obstinacy they again set fire to the grass which I and some others present could not prevail until I was oblig’d to fire a musquet load with small shot at one of the ring leaders which sent them off; as we were apprised of this last attempt of theirs we got the fire out before it got a head; but the first spread like wild fire in the woods and grass.

Notwithstanding my firing which must have been a little hurt because we saw a few drops of blood on some linen he had gone over; they did not go far from us for we soon heard their voices in the woods upon which Mr Banks and I and 3 or 4 more went to look for them and very soon met them comeing towards us as they had each 4 or 5 darts a piece and not knowing their intention we seized upon six or seven of the first darts we met with;this alarm’d them o much that they all made off and we followed them for near half a mile and then set down and call’d to them and they stopped also; after some little unintelligible conversation had passed they lay down their darts and came to us in a very friendly manner; we now returned the darts we had taken from them which reconcil’d every thing.”

 Parkinson's Journal, 19 July 1770

Sydney Parkinson

“And a little before we left the land; they set fire to the grass around the spot where we had pitched our tent; but luckily for us, most of our things were on-board; or they would, in all probability, have been consumed as the fire burnt very fiercely; and had like to have destroyed a litter of pigs; and some other thing. 

We shot one of them who ran up a hill with a fore brand, and wounded him.  Several of them came to us afterwards, and made peace with us.”

During his stay, Parkinson recorded 130 words of the Guugu Yimithirr language in his journal. It is likely that this was the first written record of any Aboriginal language in this country.

With thanks to the Cooktown Re-enactment Association.

More about historic Cooktown...

Cooktown, the small town whose history changed the world

The 51st Re-enactment of Cook's Landing

Picture Gallery: Welcome to Cooktown!

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Memories which last forever

Rhett Lego, CEO of the Conjoint Marketing Group in Germany, helped make a remarkable short video of Guurrbi Tours about five years ago. Recently he wrote his memories of that afternoon with Willie for German tour operator, Art of Travel, and sent us a copy. Here it is.

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Willie Gordon

"I have a belief that there will be about five memories in my life that I will take with me to my grave. One of mine will be of my time with Willie Gordon in his homelands north of Cooktown in Far North Queensland.

"In my role of promoting Cairns and the Great Barrier Reef region across Europe and the UK, I have the pleasure of promoting some of the world’s greatest and most unique places, let alone the people in this remarkable corner of the planet.

"On the morning I first met Willie in his country on his rock art tour, I was accompanying a group of five backpackers who we had recruited to be part of a film promotion we were shooting for Cairns. We had backpackers from Ireland, England, Antigua, Australia and Switzerland. We had had a rather large night in Cape Tribulation the night before and I remember telling them that I didn’t care what time they went to bed, but when they got up to meet Willie the next day, they had to remember the word: Respect.

"We drove up the Bloomfield track from Cape Tribulation to Cooktown and from there about and hour and a half further north of Cooktown to where Willie lives in his country.

"As we waited in the car park, Willie arrived in his understated casual way and introduced himself to the group. We all began an immersion into his country as he described the dreaming stories of his land as we walked along our path across an escarpment to the top of an open, rocky area that afforded us a remarkable vista over the country.

"As we walk, Willie quietly tells his stories and finds out more about our group of young and somewhat hung- over backpackers, who by this time were intently listening to every word he was telling us all.

"As we walked down a track toward the cave where the rock art is which is tens of thousands of years old, we come across a snake sunning itself on the track. Willie encourages us to walk quietly past where the snake had slid off into the undercover, leaving me in no doubt that he was silently telling the snake that we were OK and wouldn’t be any cause for concern for Mr. Snake. I hate snakes by the way, but somehow with Willie’s presence I sort of felt safe.

"We arrived at the rock art site where Willie allowed us to sit and gather our thoughts and bath in the splendor of the magic of this place. The backpackers were feeling the humidity and the impact of their late night. Owen the mad Irishman was sitting quietly on his own when Willie just sat next to him and spoke to him, telling Owen about parts of his life that he should not have known given that they had just met. Owen was a hard drinking, heavily tattooed loveable mad-man. But after a few minutes Owen was in tears responding to Willie's questions telling him about his early years of his life, which Willie somehow seemed to know all about.

"Meanwhile the young woman from Antigua was sitting quietly and Willie commented that he knew her mother was no longer with her but that she would see her again and that she was OK. The girl was both visibly shocked and at the same time remarkably calm as she and Willie proceeded to discuss how she had lost her mother early in her life, but that in their next life they would be together.

"Remarkable.

"Willie recounted his stories of his lands; of the cave art; of his ancestors and of course of his lessons in life which, whilst steeped in thousands of years of wisdom, are as relevant today and they have been over time. 

"I sat in awe – not only at the remarkable spirituality of Willie the man, but at his incredible human insight and calmness.  His tour was incredible; his passion for what he does and how he does it unrivalled; his ability to connect to people uncanny, and his warmth as an individual one of the most engaging I have encountered in my 50 plus years on this planet.

"I love one of the quotes on the Gurrubi Tours website which captures his spirituality brilliantly - “This is not just about Aboriginal rock art.  It is about the present and the future and how we live.”

"The five hour journey back to Cairns was a quiet and reflective time for us all, with each of us knowing that we had just had an incredible experience. Owen the mad Irish man was quiet and reserved that night. He had been touched by Willie, as indeed had we all.

"As I write of these experiences, the hairs on the back of my neck stand up in memory of my time with this incredible human being. This is truly a man and a tour that you need to do – it will be an experience you will remember for life."

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Thanks so much for sharing this, Rhett, and for the great short video which came out of the visit.  

If you would like to see the video - and to meet Owen, the Irishman! - click the link. And here's the shorter version of the article in German which resulted.

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How Scrub Python got his flat head & the Endeavour River story

This is a story about Mungurru the Amethyst Python, also known as Scrub Python. In Guugu Yimithirr mythology, he's responsible for the creation of Wahalumbaal Birri the Endeavour River, and Dyiirrii, the rock we now call Nobby Point. Here's the story as told and illustrated by my Dad, Tulo, in Milbi, Aboriginal Tales from Queensland's Endeavour River.

There was a blackbird, called Dyirimadhi, who wanted to marry the daughter of old Mungurru, the Scrub Python. But that old Mungurru wouldn't wouldn't give his daughter to Blackbird. He didn't want them to get married. So Blackbird got cross with that old Scrub Python.

One day Scrub Python went out to sun himself. He lay down and stretched himself out in the heat of the day. Soon he fell asleep.

Dyirimadhi, the blackbird, had been out hunting. He was just on his way back to camp when he heard some little birds laughing at something. 'What are these little birds laughing at,' he said. 'Let me just go have a look.' He went over quietly and saw that old Python sunning himself. The little birds were laughing at him, asleep in the sun. 'Ohh,' said Dyirimadhi, 'that's my old father-in-law. That's the fellow who didn't give me his daughter.'

So he went off quietly again, and he looked all around. He looked and he looked and he looked until he found a big, heavy stone. He took that big stone, and he flew way up high into the clouds with it. He flew around and then he looked down to see where that old Mungurru was lying. When he was right above him, he let go of the big stone.

The big stone went down, down, and landed right where old Python's head was. When that big rock landed on his head, that old Mungurru started to thrash about. He rolled this way, then he rolled over that way. He didn't know what to do with all the pain. Then the thought of the sea came into his mind. He headed off to the East, running towards the sea. He went straight down and came upon the sea right at Gun-gaar, where Cooktown is today. He left deep tracks behind him, and that's where the Endeavour River is now. Before that old Scrub Python travelled down to the sea there was no river there.

When he reached the sea, old Mungurru went right out into the deep water. There he stayed for three nights and three days. But the sea was very cold. That old Python began to feel cold right through, so he said to himself, 'I'll go back West again.' He began to swim. He came to the shallow water, and then right up on the shore. Then he coiled himself up in the sand and went to sleep.

Soon the early morning sun came up, and he was still asleep. The sun rose and went higher and higher in the sky. Soon it was straight overhead, and still that old Mungurru slept. The sun became very very hot. It began to turn that Scrub Python hard. Finally the sun just turned him into a rock. 

Old Mungurru is still there, all coiled up, a big rock just beside the sea. The old people call that rock Dyiirii. In English it's called Nobby Point. And whenever you see a Scrub Python nowadays, you can see his flat head from when that big rock hit him.

How the lizard got its frill

Cooktown - the small town whose history changed the world

The Aboriginal family: Growing up
About our tours

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