u 



DESCRIPTIONS OF FURTHER HIGHLY ORNATE 



BOOMERANGS FROM NEW SOUTH WALES 



AND QUEENSLAND. 



By R. Ethbridge, June., Curator of the Australian Museum. 



(Plates il-v.) 



The boomerangs described in the present communication may 

 be regarded as supplementary to those of an ornate nature 

 figured in these " Proceedings,"* and the " Macleay Memorial 

 Volume. "t They are from the collections of Dr. J. C. Cox, and 

 Messrs. P. R. Pedley and N. Hardy, and my best thanks are due 

 to these gentlemen for the loan of the weapons. 



The first five boomerangs generally resemble one of those first 

 referred to, | where the incised ornament consists of loops returned 

 on themselves, either continuous along the whole length of the 

 weapon or disconnected one from the other. 



The most highly ornate of the five (Fig. 4) bears three incised 

 loops formed by from three to five continuous grooves, the loops 

 gradually inci'easing in length. The free end of the shortest loop 

 commences near one of the apices of the weapon, passes down 

 the middle line for about one quarter its length, then turns 

 to the left or concave side of the boomerang and is returned 

 again to the apex, at this point rounding on to the convex side, 

 which it follows to a point a trifle beyond the centre of the 

 weapon. Here it turns to the left as far as the middle line, and 

 is again returned in that plane until meeting with and joining 

 the first bend, the loop curves on itself to the left and follows the 

 concave margin throughout the remaining length of the weapon, 

 i e., to the further apex, then returning on itself to the right, 

 passes on to the cons^ex margin, which it follows until coming in 



» Pioc. Liun. Soc. N.S Wales, 1894, ix. (2), p. 193. 



t P. 237, t. 32, f. 1-8. 



+ Proc. Lmn. Soc. K.S, Wales, I.e., t. 15, f. 1. 



