4 RECORDS OF THE AU8TRAXIAN MUSEUM. 



similar to those already described in the first " Bull-roarer," and 

 the stone implement. 



On the flat side of this implement (PI. ii., Fig. 6), the carving 

 is very remarkable, consisting of indiscriminately scattered small 

 circles, and arcs or semicircles in various degrees of completeness 

 and position. Here and there are transverse short incised lines 

 proceeding from the margins inwards, precisely as the larger 

 incisions drawn in PI. i., Figs. 1 and 2. These crossbars or trans- 

 verse incisions are also seen in one of Hardman's figures* of the 

 Kimberley implements. On the convex face of the smallest 

 " Bull-roarer " (PI. ii.. Fig. 8) are four discs, each one surrounded 

 by two semicircles of concentric incisions, whilst the thii'd from 

 the top is separated off by crossbars. On the reverse of this 

 implement (PI. ii., Fig. 7) the ornamentation is again different, 

 consisting of a central longitudinal serpentine figure looped on 

 itself at the upper end, margined by bow-shaped figures of three 

 or more incisions, and the re-entering angles between the latter 

 occupied by short transverse bars. The execution of the incised 

 sculpture on this beautiful little implement is of a much more 

 finished nature than that on the preceding "Bull-roarer" (PI. ii.. 

 Figs. ^ and G), and more akin to that of the first descri))ed 

 (PI. i.. Figs. 3 and 4). It is ten inches long by one and a quarter 

 inches wide. 



The question of this circular ornamentation or pictography 

 seems to have engaged the attention of writers on the Australian 

 Aborigines but little. It has been suggested by Mr. D. Brown, 

 who obtained examples from Stuart's Creek, Central Australia, 

 that these concentric rings indicate the practice of sun worship 

 on the part of those who carved them.f On the other hand, 

 Pi'of. R. Tate rejects the view that they are symbols at all, and 

 believes the execution of them to be merely a matter of sport, j 

 He further very much doubted if they could be regarded as the 

 production of the untutored Aboriginal. It is, however, a curious 

 coincidence tliat one of the principal localities for these circular 

 inscised " Bull-roarers " is Kimberley, where at the time of Mr. 

 Hardman's explorations the Blacks had come in contact with the 

 White-man possibly as little as anywhere. Without entering 

 into the question of sun worship, although some of our Aboriginal 

 tribes seem to have possessed customs and practices suspiciously 

 like this form of adoration, even if they were unacquainted with, 

 or had lost their esoteric meaning — it may be pointed out that 

 the only published objects bearing this circular ornamentation 

 are " Bull roarers," and as everyone knows these are the most 



* Proc. K. Irish Acad. (2), i., 1888, No. 1, t. 3, f. 2. 

 t Trans. Eoy. Soc. S.A., iii., 1880, p. xxiii. 

 I Trans. Roy. Soc. S.A., iii., 1880, p. xxiv. 



