A new documentary showcases an undersea Aboriginal archaeological site that needs greater protection

Archeologists have called for greater protection of an undersea Indigenous heritage site in the Pilbara as a new documentary about its discovery comes out. In 2022, ancient artifacts were found 14m underwater at Murujuga (Dampier Archipelago) by a team of researchers from Flinders University working alongside the Murujuga Aboriginal Corporation and colleagues from the University of Western Australia. According to The Deep History of Sea Country project, the findings provide knowledge of ancient Aboriginal activity in an area that was once dry land. Lead researcher at the project, Professor Jonathan Benjamin, said the area needed to be protected because of its cultural significance and the insight that it could provide into ancient Aboriginal cultures. “Who knows how much irreplaceable heritage was thought to have been lost before we discovered them through scientific diving,” he said. “The discovery of more and more artifacts establishing the submerged sites of Murujuga are of national importance and provides an opportunity to protect all types of underwater cultural heritage. The research into the findings will feature in a new documentary series, The First Inventors, which showcases Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander innovation throughout history. The group of researchers will also publish their findings in a peer-reviewed journal. Dr Benjamin said the documentary would bring awareness to the site and that greater protection should be provided by the Federal Government. ‘Working hand in hand with traditional owners and custodians, the discoveries at Murujuga present compelling evidence of the inventiveness and resourcefulness of generation after generation of Aboriginal people,” he said. “What’s needed now is a cohesive, national approach to apply Federal and State protections to all underwater cultural heritage sites, rather than the current approach which provides blanket automatic protection to shipwrecks over 75 years old, but requires ministerial approval to protect other types of archaeology, including Indigenous sites underwater. “We’ve confirmed the survivability of seabed archaeology, preserved for many thousands of years; the challenge now is to ensure submerged cultural sites survive into the future, given the pressure of modern impacts on our seabed and shores.”