318 
R.G. Bednarik 
Figure 1 The engraved slate fragment from Walyunga. 
GENERAL OBSERVATIONS 
The slate fragment is 51.8 mm long, 31.9 mm 
wide (parallel to bevelled edge), and its thickness 
varies only from 2.9 mm to 3.0 mm (Figure 1). It is 
of dark grey to very dark grey colour (Munsell 
Color Charts 7.5YR 3.5/0). Its two principal 
surfaces are perfectly flat, and the concentration of 
most of the taphonomic markings on them suggests 
that the fragment has undergone a complex history 
of kinetic damage before attaining its present size 
and shape. It appears to have begun its life as a 
roofing tile, and it seems that it has lain on the 
ground for a length of time before the surviving 
fracture surfaces became exposed to kinetic wear. 
In its present shape it received some edge wear, 
suggesting that it was transported in or on the 
sandy sediment, and for a time it must have been 
buried, at least partially, in the sediment. This i s 
indicated by a residue of sandy soil in a recess 
among the edge fractures. The light-brown 
sediment comprises 10-15% sorted quartz grains 
of 150-250 pm, mostly angular and often 
irregularly shaped. Some grains are moderately 
rounded and of frosted surface, colouration ranges 
from clear to reddish. Smaller quartz grains occur 
also occasionally, but the soil seems to be 
characterised by a component of medium to coarse 
quartz sand locally derived from the 
decomposition of a granite. 
In the following description of the plaque's 
markings, side A (Figure 2) refers to the face that 
bears the number along the edge which is bevelled 
on the second face, side B (Figure 4). Left hand 
(l.h.) refers in both cases to the straight and 
bevelled edge, so that 'top' and 'bottom' refer to 
different edges in considering the two faces (i.e. as 
depicted in Figs 2 and 4). 
Side A (Figure 2) 
Minor red pigment traces occur locally, caused 
by rubbing against the surface without causing 
mechanical damage. Older and more recent 
depressions on the surface can readily be discerned 
by the presence of a whitish deposit in the older 
depressions. The fractures forming the r.h. (right 
hand), irregular edge are worn to a micro-wane of 
about 90 pm width, whereas the wane-width 
consistently averages approximately 180 pm on the 
Figure 2 The markings on side A of the slate fragment. The scale is 10 mm long. 
