TY - JOUR
T1 - Archaeology of the Waiat mysteries on Woeydhul Island in Western Torres Strait
AU - Wright, Duncan
AU - Samper Carro, Sofia C.
AU - Nejman, Ladislav
AU - Van Der Kolk, Glenn
AU - Litster, Mirani
AU - Langley, Michelle C.
AU - Wood, Rachel
AU - Claringbold, Iona
AU - Repu, Cygnet
PY - 2021/6
Y1 - 2021/6
N2 - Secret societies, involving restricted and hierarchically organised initiation rituals, are conspicuous in the chronicles of many past and present societies. These rarely leave a substantial written record and yet archaeology can provide vivid insight into past performances, for example in relation to Roman 'mystery cults'. Far less research, however, has focused on Australia and the Pacific Islands. This article presents archaeological evidence for ceremonies practised on Woeydhul Island in the Western Torres Strait, exploring initiation rituals at the cusp of contemporary memory. By doing so, it provides a detailed and long-term history for Torres Strait Islander secret societies and ritual activities involving dugong bone mounds, stone arrangements and worked stingray spines.
AB - Secret societies, involving restricted and hierarchically organised initiation rituals, are conspicuous in the chronicles of many past and present societies. These rarely leave a substantial written record and yet archaeology can provide vivid insight into past performances, for example in relation to Roman 'mystery cults'. Far less research, however, has focused on Australia and the Pacific Islands. This article presents archaeological evidence for ceremonies practised on Woeydhul Island in the Western Torres Strait, exploring initiation rituals at the cusp of contemporary memory. By doing so, it provides a detailed and long-term history for Torres Strait Islander secret societies and ritual activities involving dugong bone mounds, stone arrangements and worked stingray spines.
KW - Australia
KW - culture hero
KW - secret societies
KW - Torres Strait
KW - Waiat
KW - Woeydhul
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85107418511&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://purl.org/au-research/grants/ARC/LP140100387
U2 - 10.15184/aqy.2021.39
DO - 10.15184/aqy.2021.39
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85107418511
SN - 0003-598X
VL - 95
SP - 791
EP - 811
JO - Antiquity
JF - Antiquity
IS - 381
ER -