THE KEPPEL ISLANDS - PRELIMINARY INVESTIGATIONS

M . J . Rowland

I s l a n d s shou ld be an e x c e l l e n t t h e a t r e i n which t o s t u d y e v o l u t i o n

( ~ a c A r t h u r and Wilson 1967: 152)

ISLAND BIOGEOGRAPHY AND ARCHAEOLOGY

I s l a n d s i n g e n e r a l t e n d t o be i s o l a t e d o r s e m i - i s o l a t e d ; t hey o f t e n t end t o be l i m i t e d i n s i z e and hence suppor t smal l p o p u l a t i o n s . Thus i s l a n d s a r e of c o n c e p t u a l and p r a c t i c a l u t i l i t y t o t h e a r c h a e o l o g i s t . For example i n terms o f mapping envi ronmenta l p a r a m e t e r s and l o c a t i n g a r c h a e o l o g i c a l s i t e s an i s l a n d p r o v i d e s a manageable a r e a of s t u d y . I s l a n d s a r e a l s o u s e f u l f o r deve lop ing models o f human a d a p t a t i o n . For example, one can c o n s i d e r t h e deg ree o f e x t e r n a l l y v e r s u s i n t e r n a l l y d i r e c t e d change; group s e l e c t i o n i n a s m a l l p o p u l a t i o n ; p a r t i c u l a r a d a p t i v e s t r a t e g i e s t h a t a r i s e i n r e s p o n s e t o l i m i t a t i o n s i n r e s o u r c e s and s o on.

There a r e numerous o t h e r t h e o r e t i c a l and p r a c t i c a l a t t r a c t i o n s i n s t u d y i n g i s l a n d s ( s e e f o r example Fosberg 1963 and MacArthur and Wilson 1967) and t h e s e p rov ide t h e b a s i s f o r my r e s e a r c h i n t o t h e A b o r i g i n a l p r e h i s t o r y o f t h e Keppel I s l a n d s .

THE KEPPEL ISLANDS

The Keppel I s l a n d s , s i t u a t e d o f f t h e Queensland c o a s t nea r Rockhampton, p r o v i d e f o r an i n t r i g u i n g s t u d y of p r e h i s t o r i c o c c u p a t i o n and a d a p t a t i o n . There a r e i n t h e group a number of i s l a n d s o f v a r i o u s s i z e s ; t h e y va ry i n d i s t a n c e from t h e mainland and v a r y i n t h e i r r e s o u r c e base (Tab le 1). It should be p o s s i b l e among o t h e r t h i n g s t o d e t e c t p o p u l a t i o n t h r e s h o l d s , d e t e r m i n a n t s of s e t t l e m e n t ( e s p e c i a l l y a permanent / seasonal dichotomy) and a d a p t i v e s t r a t e g i e s r e l a t e d t o p a r t i c u l a r envi ronmenta l c o n t e x t s .

Table 1: Keppel Islands - area

North Keppel Corroboree Pumpkin Sloping South Keppel Middle Miall Ha l fway H ~ ~ P Y

Hectares

588 20 8 8

1454 65 40 8 65

Initial discovery - coastal exploration Cook discovered and named the Keppel Islands in May 1770 and

noted 'people upon one of the islands' eagleho hole 1955, Vol.l:328) as did Banks (Beaglehole 1963:69-70).

Thirty-two years later in August 1802 Matthew Flinders noted people on South Keppel (Flinders 1814, Vo1.2:33). At the same time Captain Murray observed people on North Keppel (Lee 1915 : 174-75).

In December 1847 John MacGillivray landed on South Keppel where he found a small well and a shell for drinking, and saw a small group of women and children (MacGillivray 1952, Vol.l:65-66).

Hence in almost 100 years of coastal exploration little was learnt about the Keppel Islanders. However all observers note people on the islands and in at least one case the group seen was larger than a single family. Observations were made in May, August and December. An hypothesis that the islands were seasonally visited would not be well supported by these observations though neither could permanent occupation be supported on this evidence alone.

Overland exploration

In 1855 William and Charles Archer established Gracemere Station southwest of Rockhampton and from the late 1850s onwards the establishment of other stations and the gold rush at Canoona brought the local Aborigines into rapid contact with Europeans (Bird 1904; Pattison 1939; Pike 1978). North Keppel was visited in 1865 and a group of Aborigines, both male and female, were met (Bird 1904:140-41).

In 1867 two tantalising descriptions of the Keppel Islanders appear in the Rockhampton Bulletin. The paper reported on the intention to form a cattle station on Keppel Island:

A diminutive race of blacks inhabit the Island. They subsist chiefly on fish and roots. They are quite wild and their yabbering is altogether unintelligible to the blacks of the mainland (Rockhampton Bulletin, 9 April 1867).

A short time later the paper records:

There are on the Island about 60 blacks who live amongst the rocks and in small caves. There is no game and they subsist

e n t i r e l y on f i s h , r o o t s and g r a s s . The i r bod ie s a r e covered w i t h a s o r t o f downy h a i r and t h e i r head wool i s o f a r e d d i s h brown. The males a r e f i n e , l a r g e f a t s h i n y f e l l o w s whose mode o f l i v i n g seems t o a g r e e wi th them, wh i l e t h e g i n s and c h i l d r e n a r e poor and m i s e r a b l e both i n s t a t u r e and appea rance . They do no t unders tand t h e language o f t h e mainland and have n e i t h e r canoes o r weapons i n t h e i r p o s s e s s i o n (Rockhampton B u l l e t i n , 18 A p r i l 1867).

A M r W.T. Wyndham c la imed t o be t h e f i r s t European t o have r e s i d e d permanent ly on t h e Keppels ( ~ y n d h a m 1889:41-42), a p p a r e n t l y i n 1884 (Roth 1898: lO) . Wyndham g i v e s a somewhat obscure d e s c r i p t i o n o f t h e Keppel I s l a n d e r s language b u t one can i n f e r t h a t h e d i d n o t e i t had some d i s t i n c t i v e f e a t u r e s (Wyndham 1889:41-42).

The Keppel I s l a n d e r s were s e e n by t h e e a r l y e x p l o r e r s t o be ' d i f f e r e n t ' and t h i s i s suppor t ed by l a t e r o b s e r v a t i o n s , p a r t i c u l a r l y t h o s e o f Wal ter Roth.

W a l t e r Roth and t h e Keppel I s l a n d s

R o t h ' s a r r i v a l i n t h e a r e a i n 1897 adds more subs t ance t o t h e d i f f e r e n c e s no ted above. A d e t a i l e d account o f t h e Rockhampton and s u r r o u n d i n g c o a s t , by Roth , i s g i v e n i n an unpubl ished r e p o r t t o t h e Commissioner o f P o l i c e , Br isbane ( ~ 0 t h 1898) . Most of t h e c o n t e n t s o f t h i s r e p o r t a r e a v a i l a b l e i n pub l i shed form i n Ro th ' s 18 North Queensland Ethnography B u l l e t i n s . But t h e r e a r e some d i f f e r e n c e s between t h e s o u r c e s . The Roth c o l l e c t i o n i n t h e A u s t r a l i a n Museum, Sydney, a l s o p r o v i d e s a major s o u r c e o f i n f o r m a t i o n (pope and Moore 1967) .

Roth was p r e s e n t i n t h e Rockhampton a r e a from March t o October 1897 and s u b s e q u e n t l y corresponded wi th s e v e r a l long-t ime r e s i d e n t s o f t h e a r e a ( ~ 0 t h 1910 ( 1 8 ) : 8 4 F o o t n o t e ) , he a l s o made two t r i p s t o South Keppel I s l a n d . In October 1897 Roth v i s i t e d South Keppel and r e c o r d e d 19 A b o r i g i n e s p r e s e n t . Wyndham informed him t h a t i n 1884 t h e r e were 54 i n d i v i d u a l s on t h e i s l a n d d i v i d e d i n t o two g r o u p s , one on t h e sou th e x t r e m i t y , t h e o t h e r on t h e n o r t h (Roth 1898:lO-11).

C u l t u r a l d i f f e r e n c e s no ted by Roth

Swimming l o g s and c a n o e s : The Keppel I s l a n d e r s d i d no t have canoes a t t h e t ime o f R o t h ' s v i s i t i n 1897, u s i n g o n l y swimming l o g s (Roth 1898: 13) . He n o t e s i n t h e unpubl ished manuscr ip t t h a t t hey used t o have canoes b u t t h e s e 'were subsequen t ly d e s t r o y e d by a l a t e r l e a s e r o f Big Keppel ' ( ~ 0 t h 1898:13). This h a s t hen been c r o s s e d out and does n o t appea r i n t h e pub l i shed b u l l e t i n s . I t i s a p p a r e n t however t h a t t h e Keppel I s l a n d e r s d i d have canoes i n t h e r e c e n t p a s t . Both Roth and a M r Cowie o b t a i n e d models o f one-piece b a r k canoes made by t h e Keppel I s l a n d e r s ( ~ 0 t h 1898:47, 1910 ( 1 4 ) : 6 ) and Wyndham informed Roth o f canoe t r e e s he had seen on t h e i s l a n d s ( ~ 0 t h l 8 9 8 : 4 8 ) .

I n c o n t r a s t t o t h e Keppel I s l a n d e r s t h e Abor ig ines a t t h e F i t z r o y River mouth had t h r e e - p i e c e bark canoes j u s t p r i o r t o Ro th ' s a r r i v a l (Roth 1910 ( 1 4 ) : l O ) . Davidson s e e s t h e t h r e e - p i e c e bark canoe a s a l o c a l development i n t h e Whitsunday I s l a n d - F i t z r o y River d i s t r i c t and t h a t i t was r e s p o n s i b l e f o r t h e d i sappea rance of t h e

s ing le -p iece ba rk canoe i n t h e a r e a (Davidson 1935:138). The absence o f the three-piece v a r i e t y and s u r v i v a l o f t h e one-piece type on t h e Keppels might r e p r e s e n t a ' c u l t u r a l l a g ' s i t u a t i o n due t o i s o l a t . i o n .

F i sh hooks: Roth observed f i s h hooks on t h e Keppels bu t n o t on t h e ad jacen t mainland (Roth 1898: 24) . They were made o f coconut o r t u r t l e s h e l l (Roth 1898:24, 1904 (7 ) :33 ; J a r d i n e 1936) . Massola a rgues t h a t t h e s e hooks were moving sou th on European c o n t a c t and may have been imported from Melanesia , be ing s i m i l a r t o Po lynes ian ( T a h i t i a n ) forms (Massola 1956: 11) .

Stone d r i l l s : Roth observed s t o n e d r i l l s used f o r making f i s h hooks on the Keppels bu t not on t h e mainland (Roth 1898:52, 1904 ( 7 ) : 2 4 ) . These show s i m i l a r i t i e s wi th ones from Cape York (McCarthy 1976:92 ~ i g . 7 0 ) and c l o s e p a r a l l e l s wi th ones from t h e New Guinea Highlands ( S t r a t h e r n 1969:317 and P l a t e s XVI and XVII) where t h e y a r e a l s o used f o r d r i l l i n g s h e l l .

Harpoons: The harpoon wi th d e t a c h a b l e head was known throughout t h e a r e a ( ~ 0 t h 1898:24-25, 1901 ( 3 ) : 3 2 ; J a r d i n e 1936; Flowers 1956:1259). Massola argues t h a t t h e s e harpoons may have been g r e a t l y in f luenced i f not in t roduced by T o r r e s S t r a i t I s l a n d e r s (Massola 1964:201). He sugges t s t h e e a r l i e s t ones in t roduced were t h e double-barbed and multi-pronged v a r i e t i e s wi th b a r b s c u t o u t o f t h e s o l i d (Massola 1964:204). The presence o f t h i s type on t h e Keppels c o r r e l a t e s wi th t h e s imple s h e l l f i s h hook which Massola a l s o b e l i e v e s t o be of Melanesian o r i g i n (Massola 1956:15).

Other i tems: Roth d e s c r i b e s t h r e e t y p e s o f s t o n e a x e s from t h e mainland ( ~ 0 t h 1898:52-53) bu t p o i n t s o u t t h a t t h e Keppel I s l a n d e r s knew nothing about s tone kn ives o r axes . I n s t e a d t h e y used any sha rp -edged conven ien t ly s i z e d p iece o f rock and f i n i s h k d o f f u s i n g a s p e c i e s of Donax (Roth 1898:52). They used unmodified s t o n e s a s axes (Roth l898:SZ).

Boomerangs were known throughout t h e a r e a (Roth 1898:58-59, 1910 (13):202; J a r d i n e 1936) b u t no t on t h e Keppels. S i x o r seven types of n u l l a s were known on t h e mainland b u t on ly one t y p e on t h e Keppels (Roth 1898:57, 1910 (13):207-209). S e v e r a l v a r i e t i e s o f s h i e l d were known i n t h e a r e a bu t none on t h e Keppels (Roth 1898:60-63, 1910 (13) :205; J a r d i n e 1936). On t h e mainland h u t s and s h e l t e r s were made of t r i p o d s c a f f o l d i n g but on t h e Keppels t h e y were made wi th arched s t i c k s and e a r t h was thrown up around t h e c i rcumference ( ~ 0 t h l898:48).

Roth no tes o t h e r i tems on t h e Keppels b u t not on t h e a d j a c e n t mainland. These included neck laces o f - o v a t e p i e c e s o f ~ a u t i l i s l s h e l l o r b i t s of red t o a d s t o o l (Roth 1898:40). Tooth e v u l s i o n was p r a c t i c e d on t h e Keppels bu t not on t h e mainland (Roth 1898: 35 and 41 , 1910 (15) :30) . On t h e Keppels a s h o r t mangrove s t i c k p a i n t e d and c h a r r e d a t both ends was used f o r d i g g i n g yams (Roth l898:SO). S h e l l f i s h were used a s s c r a p e r s (Roth 1904 ( 7 ) : 2 1 ) ; a c u t t l e s h e l l used f o r c u t t i n g h a i r (Roth 1898:14, 1910 (15) :22) and a s p e c i a l game was played by t h e women (Roth 1902 ( 4 ) : 1 3 ) . B u r i a l s were p laced i n s h e l t e r s on t h e i s l a n d and marked by t h e p r e s e n c e o f cy l indro-con ica l emblems ( ~ a r d i n e 1936). These a r e r e f e r r e d t o a s ' d o l l s ' by Roth (Roth 1898:37-38, 1902 ( 4 ) : 1 3 ) .

L i n g u i s t i c d i f f e r e n c e s

Roth no tes t h a t t h e Keppel I s l a n d e r s had a r a p i d i t y o f u t t e r a n c e , recognised by t h e Rockhampton and Yeppoon Abor ig ines , who r e f e r r e d t o them a s ' a l l same crow' ( ~ 0 t h 1898:11, 1910 (18):88-90). He a l s o comments t h a t h i s word l i s t f o r t h e Keppel I s l a n d s i s undoubtedly a ve ry mixed one (Roth 1898:67) , The l i n g u i s t i c ev idence h a s not yet been f u l l y i n v e s t i g a t e d b u t t h e volume o f m a t e r i a l a v a i l a b l e (Roth 1898: Word l i s t s ; Mul ler 52-53, Archer 54-57 and Anonymous 114-15 i n Curr 1886-7; Dutton 1907:135-36 and von Schmidt 1912) sugges t s t h a t a n a l y s i s w i l l be rewarding.

Phys ica l d i f f e r e n c e s

Roth c o l l e c t e d a number of s k u l l s from t h e Keppel I s l a n d s , now i n t h e Roth c o l l e c t i o n a t t h e A u s t r a l i a n Museum, Sydney. They were f i r s t desc r ibed by Klaa t sch i n 1908. From t h e s e s k u l l s he d e f i n e d a Keppel I s l and type t h a t has :

such a combination of p r i m i t i v e c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s t h a t we a r e j u s t i f i e d i n cons ide r ing t h e q u e s t i o n whether t h e s e peop le a r e not perhaps t h e remanent o f an o l d e r and more p r i m i t i v e v a r i e t y than o t h e r A u s t r a l i a n s ( K l a a t s c h 1908:148).

He a t t r i b u t e d the d i f f e r e n c e t o i s o l a t i o n (Klaa t sch 1908:161). More r e c e n t l y Macintosh and Larnach have d e s c r i b e d t h e s k u l l s i n a number of papers (Larnach and Macintosh 1970; Macintosh and Larnach 1972, 1973 and 1976) a s we l l a s one s p e c i f i c a l l y on t h e Keppel s k u l l s i n which they conclude t h a t t h e s k u l l s r e p r e s e n t e d ' t h e most s t r i k i n g i n s t a n c e we have seen of micro-evolut ion w i t h i n t h e A u s t r a l i a n Aborigines ' (Larnach and Macintosh 1972:12).

One f e a t u r e they note i n t h e s k u l l s i s t h e h igh pe rcen tage o f a u d i t o r y exos toses (Larnach and Macintosh 1970:5). Inbreed ing would seem t o be r e s p o n s i b l e f o r c o n c e n t r a t i n g t h e i n c i d e n c e o f e x o s t o s e s (Hrd l i cka 1935:57; Roche 1964:87) which adds some suppor t t o t h e p i c t u r e of p o s s i b l e i s o l a t i o n .

Macintosh and Larnach note t h a t t h e m a t e r i a l i n Sydney i s t h e on ly s k e l e t a l m a t e r i a l a v a i l a b l e from t h e Keppels. Th i s is n o t i n f a c t c o r r e c t . There i s one s k u l l i n Melbourne, s i x s k u l l s and seven mandibles i n the Queensland Museum and p o s t - c r a n i a l m a t e r i a l i n t h e Anatomy Department, Unive r s i ty of Queensland. Together wi th t h e s k u l l s i n t h e Roth c o l l e c t i o n t h i s makes a t o t a l of 23. I n v iew o f t h e c la ims made by Macintosh and Larnach and t h o s e made h e r e t h i s l a r g e r sample u r g e n t l y needs d e s c r i b i n g . It i s t o o l a r g e an under tak ing t o be included a s p a r t of my own r e s e a r c h s o t h i s i s a p l e a f o r someone t o r e s e a r c h t h i s m a t e r i a l .

Archaeological reconnaissance

I n March 1978, when I began t h i s p r o j e c t , no a r c h a e o l o g i c a l s i t e s were known from t h e Keppel I s l a n d s (DAIA, Archaeology Branch, Br i sbane) . In May 1978 a s i t e survey was under taken on South Keppel I s l a n d . Five s i t e s were recorded ( s e e F ig . l ) ,

A t Monkey Beach, Monkey Point and L i t t l e P e n i n s u l a middens c o n t a i n i n g predominately rock o y s t e r wi th s t o n e and bone were

I G R E A T (SOUTH) KEPPEL l S L A N D r,

Figure 1 South Keppel Island s i t e s . 1. Monkey Point, 2 . Monkey Beach, L i t t l e Peninsula, 4 . Sandhills Beach, 5. Big Peninsula Quarry, 6 . Wreck Beach, 7 . Wreck Beach Extension 1 , 8 . Wreck Beach Extension 2, 9. Red Beach, 10. Clam Bay

recorded. A t Big S a n d h i l l s Beach a s i m i l a r s i t e was recorded on a n o l d beach r i d g e about 200m in land from t h e p r e s e n t beach. Behind Big Pen insu la a s e r i e s of l a r g e blown-out dunes , ex tend ing from Wreck Beach r i g h t through t o S a n d h i l l s Beach, con ta ined a d i v e r s i t y o f s h e l l and s tone types .

A t t h e southern end of Wreck Beach a 5-10cm deep l e n s of s h e l l , s t o n e and bone i s exposed i n a bank on t h e n o r t h e r n s i d e o f t h e c r e e k and i s bur ied under 1-2m o f modern dunes . Immediately behind t h e beach f r o n t on both s i d e s o f t h e c r e e k t h e r e a r e blow-outs exposing cons ide rab le q u a n t i t i e s of s t o n e and s h e l l . I s u s p e c t t h a t t h e s e d e p o s i t s extend t h e e n t i r e l e n g t h o f t h e beach. The p r o f i l e o f t h e beach i s r e l a t i v e l y low a t the s o u t h e r n end and h i g h e r and p r o t e c t e d by she-oak mat t ing a long t h e r e s t o f t h e beach. The movement of goa t s around t h e creek a r e a may have c o n t r i b u t e d t o i n s t a b i l i t y i n t h i s a r e a . Fur the r n o r t h a long t h e beach t h e d e p o s i t s may be bur ied under 5-10m of r e c e n t sand.

I n November 1978, a survey was c a r r i e d ou t on North Keppel I s l a n d ( s e e Fig .2) . A t Stockyards Beach a l e n s o f o y s t e r s h e l l and q u a r t z f l a k e s 5-10cm deep was recorded lOcm below t h e p r e s e n t s u r f a c e .

Oyster s h e l l and a v a r i e t y of s t o n e t y p e s were a l s o found s c a t t e r e d along t h e e n t i r e l eng th o f a l a r g e i n l a n d r i d g e a t Mazie Bay. This r i d g e i s 200-300111 back from t h e modern beach and about 5-10111 above the p resen t beach l e v e l . The r i d g e s l o p e s down t o an e x t e n s i v e d ry swamp.

I n June/.July 1979 w e spent t h r e e weeks e x c a v a t i n g a t Mazie Bay. The e x t e n s i v e t h i n s c a t t e r s of s h e l l and s t o n e on t h e s u r f a c e suggested we might f i n d a s i m i l a r p a t t e r n benea th t h e s u r f a c e but t h i s d id not prove t o be t h e c a s e . Five s q u a r e s were e x c a v a t e d , running from the t o p of t h e l e e s i d e of t h e r i d g e down towards t h e swamp.

I n i t i a l su r face and subsurface d e p o s i t s i n t h e s e s q u a r e s were i n f a c t even more s p a r s e than expected. Thin l e n s e s o f s h e l l , s t o n e and bone appeared i n t h e two squares n e a r e s t t h e t o p o f t h e r i d g e bu t i n the o t h e r squares only s c a t t e r e d f ragments were d e t e c t e d . It was only a f t e r 160cm of l a r g e l y s t e r i l e sand was removed from one square t h a t t h e complexity of t h i s midden/occupat ion s i t e was f u l l y r e v e a l e d .

The t o p 160-165cm of sand on t h e upper r eaches o f t h e r i d g e ( i . e . only i n the f i r s t two squares ) a t Mazie Bay c o n t a i n s f i v e t o e i g h t t h i n l e n s e s of s h e l l , s t o n e , bone and c h a r c o a l each s e p a r a t e d by s t e r i l e sand. These l e n s e s c o n t a i n a t l e a s t t h r e e s p e c i e s o f r o c k o y s t e r , p e a r l s h e l l s , abundant l a n d s n a i l s , b i r d (?I, f i s h and s e a mammal bone and a v a r i e t y of l o c a l s t o n e m a t e r i a l s . A t about 160-165cm t h e r e i s a bur ied s o i l which can be t r a c e d throughout a l l squares . This s o i l i s a s soc ia ted wi th a compacted c u l t u r a l d e p o s i t of about 20cm dep th , though only i n t h e bottom t h r e e s q u a r e s . T h i s l a y e r con ta ins a v a r i e t y of s h e l l f i s h , bone, s t o n e and c h a r c o a l . Below t h i s was 20cm of s t e r i l e sand then a s i m i l a r c u l t u r a l d e p o s i t about lOcm t h i c k . There i s then lOcm of s t e r i l e sand and a c u l t u r a l l a y e r 5cm t h i c k . A t t h i s point (over 2m d e p t h ) i t was dangerous t o proceed f u r t h e r . Augering revealed a f u r t h e r 60cm o f s t e r i l e sand then another t h i n c u l t u r a l depos i t below which was whi te sand. Although we were keen t o proceed i t was imposs ib le and s o t h i s lower l a y e r remains unexplored.

From t h e above account we can t e n t a t i v e l y conclude t h a t t h e r e were four pe r iods of i n t e n s i v e o c c u p a t i o n each followed by s i t e

NORTH KEPPEL l SLAND

SLOPING Is.

0

Figure 2 North Keppel I s land sites. 1 . Corroboree Is land, 2. Stockyards Beach, 3 . Considine Bay, 4 . Mazie Bay

abandonment a l l o w i n g s t e r i l e sand t o b u i l d up. The l a s t major o c c u p a t i o n o c c u r r e d d u r i n g a p e r i o d o f s t a n d s t i l l i n dune bui ld-up . A f t e r t h e s t a n d s t i l l , o c c u p a t i o n may have involved more f r equen t v i s i t s t o t h e beach b u t by fewer peop le o r f o r b r i e f e r p e r i o d s . Th i s o u t l i n e is o f c o u r s e v e r y t e n t a t i v e i n v iew of t h e l a r g e s i z e of t h e s i t e and t h e s m a l l a r e a o f o u r e x c a v a t i o n s . Undoubtedly t h e s i t e n e e d s f u r t h e r i n v e s t i g a t i o n .

Only a f r a c t i o n o f t h e f i n d s h a s so f a r been a n a l y s e d . This h a s r e v e a l e d a t l e a s t t h r e e s p e c i e s o f rock o y s t e r , p e a r l s h e l l s , a v e r y wide r a n g e o f sandy s h o r e , rocky s h o r e , mud f l a t and r e e f f r i n g e s h e l l s p e c i e s , a c o n s i d e r a b l e number o f l a n d s n a i l s , a v a r i e t y of bone ( ? p r e d o m i n a n t l y s e a mammal), pumice, c o r a l , c h a r c o a l and t h r e e t y p e s o f l o c a l s t o n e .

Few c o n c l u s i o n s c a n be r eached about t h e m a t e r i a l a t t h i s p o i n t . One g e n e r a l impres s ion however i s worth men t ion ing . S tone m a t e r i a l from t h e s i t e seems t o have come e x c l u s i v e l y from t h e i s l a n d . The i s l a n d i s composed o f poor q u a l i t y p h y l l i t i c r o c k , s a n d s t o n e s and q u a r t z i t e ( J a r d i n e 1925) and l e s s common a r e a wide r a n g e o f more f i n e - g r a i n e d beach b o u l d e r s a r e a v a i l a b l e a t a number o f l o c a l i t i e s on a l l t h e i s l a n d s . The use o f t h e s e b o u l d e r s i s a t t e s t e d by t h e l a r g e number o f f l a k e s from t h e s i t e which r e t a i n a rounded c o r t e x . Use o f l o c a l l y a v a i l a b l e s t o n e would acco rd w e l l w i t h t h e v iew t h a t t h e i n h a b i t a n t s o f t h e s e i s l a n d s were s e m i - i s o l a t e d .

Dur ing t h i s t r i p a v i s i t was a l s o made t o Corroboree I s l a n d where f l a k e d beach b o u l d e r s were l o c a t e d on an exposed r i d g e and f i n e - g r a i n e d f l a k e s were found a t a n o t h e r l o c a l i t y . S u r f a c e s t o n e was a l s o c o l l e c t e d o v e r a wide a r e a o f Consid ine Bay i n c l u d i n g a l a r g e b a s a l t f l a k e w i t h a h e a v i l y ground edge .

We have r e c e n t l y r e t u r n e d (November 1979) from a n o t h e r s i t e s u r v e y t r i p t o South Keppel I s l a n d . The i s l a n d had had v i r t u a l l y no r a i n s i n c e J u n e 1979 and t h e r e s u l t was a marked i n c r e a s e i n t h e v i s i b i l i t y o f s u r f a c e m a t e r i a l from t h e i n i t i a l s i g h t i n g o f s i t e s i n May 1978. The a r e a from S a n d h i l l s Beach through t h e dune blow-outs a r e a beh ind Big P e n i n s u l a and r i g h t a long Wreck Beach a p p e a r s t o be one e x t e n s i v e s i t e .

A t Wreck Beach a l l c u l t u r a l m a t e r i a l i s l o c a t e d i n o l d e r brown s a n d s and n o t h i n g was found i n l i g h t e r golden brown, more r e c e n t dunes . The p redomina te s h e l l f i s h s p e c i e s throughout t h e d e p o s i t s was r o c k o y s t e r . T h i s i s s u r p r i s i n g s i n c e Wreck Beach i s a l a r g e sandy p i p i beach . No ~ i p i s were s i g h t e d i n t h e midden. One i s f aced w i t h s u g g e s t i n g e i t h e r a v e r y s t r o n g (and most u n l i k e l y ) p r e f e r e n c e a g a i n s t p i p i s o r marked env i ronmen ta l changes .

F i v e new s i t e s were a l s o l o c a t e d . On t h e promontory above S a n d h i l l s Beach a s t o n e qua r ry /work ing s i t e was l o c a t e d . Stone was l o c a t e d on t h e edge o f a c l i f f and extended i n a lOOm r a d i u s from t h e c l i f f . It i n c l u d e d c o n s i d e r a b l e q u a n t i t i e s of l o c a l p h y l l i t i c r o c k s and beach b o u l d e r s . Below t h e c l i f f was a bou lde r beach from which t h i s m a t e r i a l cou ld have come. S h e l l f i s h remains were v e r y s c a n t .

At t h e s o u t h e r n end o f Wreck Beach t h e r e i s a rock promontory and beyond t h i s a s m a l l sandy beach. White sand dunes are p r e s e n t a t t h e f r o n t o f t h i s beach and behind t h e s e brown sands wi th e x t e n s i v e e x p o s u r e s o f s h e l l and s t o n e . Exposed l e n s e s a l s o sugges t l a r g e a r e a s s t i l l i n s i t u . Beyond t h i s beach i s a f u r t h e r rocky promontory and t h e n a n o t h e r s m a l l beach. On bo th s i d e s o f a c r e e k which runs o u t o f t h e midd le o f t h e beach a r e exposu res o f s t o n e and s h e l l .

A t Red Beach a most impress ive s i t e was recorded . Red Beach i s about h a l f a k i lomet re long. Modern dunes run t h e l e n g t h o f t h e beach. Immediately behind t h e s e is a massive chunk o f redlbrown e a r t h (presumably an u p l i f t e d landform) about 50m h igh . T h i s i s e r o d i n g on t o the beach a t t h e f r o n t . Atop t h i s landmass i s an e x t e n s i v e s e r i e s of o ld dunes , Huge a r e a s o f t h e s e dunes have been blown-out and d e f l a t e d though s e v e r a l a r e a s remain i n t a c t and v a s t q u a n t i t i e s of s h e l l and s t o n e have been exposed. There a r e l i t e r a l l y s e v e r a l tons of s t o n e - f l a k e s , c o r e s , implements, i n c l u d i n g t h e l o c a l p h y l l i t e s and a wide range of b e a u t i f u l l y f l a k e d and re touched f ine -g ra ined m a t e r i a l s . There a r e d i s c r e t e a r e a s o f s t o n e and s h e l l c o n c e n t r a t i o n s . This beach has the second most r e l i a b l e wa te r supp ly on the i s l a n d and t h i s f a c t o r might h e l p account f o r t h e huge q u a n t i t i e s of m a t e r i a l s i n t h e a r e a .

A t Clam Bay midden m a t e r i a l i s e r o d i n g from t h e f r o n t o f t h e beach dunes. The dune has a g r a s s and sc rub cover and midden i s exposed i n only a few p laces . A wide range o f s h e l l s was r e p r e s e n t e d , presumably gathered from t h e e x t e n s i v e c o r a l p l a t f o r m t h a t f r o n t s t h e beach. There a r e i n d i c a t i o n s t h a t t h i s i s a v e r y deep d e p o s i t .

More s i t e s could be expected t o be l o c a t e d . Local i n f o r m a n t s have t o l d us of a bora r i n g on Long Beach, and o f a b u r i a l ground on South Keppel. There a r e supposedly r o c k s h e l t e r s on b o t h i s l a n d s , though t h e one on North Keppel mentioned by a number o f i n f o r m a n t s h a s proved dec ided ly e l u s i v e . Some a r e a s we thought would have had remains d id n o t . For example, t h e r e were no remains a t Long Beach. However, i t may be t h a t d e p o s i t s h e r e have been covered by r e c e n t dunes. Nothing was discovered a t Wal ls Beach, d e s p i t e some obv ious a t t r a c t i o n s of t h i s a s a camp s i t e . Augering i n t h i s a r e a r e v e a l e d modern sands t o a depth o f 50cm then beach s h e l l and c o r a l . Cyclones may have removed d e p o s i t s i n t h i s a r e a .

Jones (1976:254) h a s suggested t h a t t h e minimum a r e a n e c e s s a r y t o suppor t an autonomous Aboriginal p o p u l a t i o n l a y c l o s e t o 48-56sq km and t h a t t h e s m a l l e s t u n i t of p o p u l a t i o n t h a t would f u n c t i o n a s an independent u n i t was 35-60 peop le . A t f i r s t g l a n c e t h e n t h e Keppel I s l a n d s might seem too small ( j u s t over 20sq km) t o s u p p o r t a permanent popula t ion but I argue t h a t t h e y d i d .

Ear ly e x p l o r e r s ' obse rva t ions i n d i c a t e d people on t h e i s l a n d s a t v a r i o u s t imes of t h e yea r . An h y p o t h e s i s t h a t t h e i s l a n d s were s e a s o n a l l y v i s i t e d would n o t be we l l suppor ted by such o b s e r v a t i o n s . I l eave open f o r t h e moment t h e p o s s i b i l i t y t h a t t h e Keppels provided a 'home-base' from which t h e mainland was s e a s o n a l l y v i s i t e d .

Popula t ion d e n s i t y f i g u r e s f o r t h e Keppels do seem h i g h when compared with o t h e r g e n e r a l summaries. Taking t h e 1867 account o f 60 people on South Keppel and guess ing a t 25 f o r North Keppel g i v e s a f i g u r e of one person per 26 h e c t a r e s f o r t h e Keppels. Th i s does n o t compare favourably wi th Queensland a s a whole - one pe r son pe r 1735 h e c t a r e s ( ~ a d c l i f f e - B r o w n 1930); n o r wi th Tasmania - one pe r son p e r 1295-2972 h e c t a r e s ( Jones 1976). We g e t a l i t t l e c l o s e r i n a comparison with Bentinck I s l and - one person pe r 124 h e c t a r e s and Mornington I s l and - one person per 259 h e c t a r e s ( J o n e s 1976) . With o t h e r smal l e r i s l a n d s t h e r e i s c o m p a r a b i l i t y i . e . Sunday I s l a n d -

one person per 32 hectares (gird 1910:454); Dunk Island - one person per 30 hectares (Banfield 1908:52); Whitsunday - one person per 98 hectares (Lamond 1960).

It is not, however, the actual area of the Keppel Islands that is important - it is the coastal zone. The importance of the coastal zone is reflected in the archaeological sites and in the material culture collection in Sydney. North Keppel is only 5.9sq km yet has a coastline of 13km, South Keppel is 14.5sq km yet has a coastline of 25km. In this area there is also a considerable tidal range, up to 5m. On that basis one could extend the coastline of each island out at least lkm - so now North Keppel has 13sq km of coastline and South Keppel 25sq km of coastline. Adding the island areas and coastal areas together we get at least 58sq km which fits acceptably within the range suggested by Jones as necessary to support an autonomous population.

Support for high population densities on islands is provided by other general observations. Tindale, for example, has noted high population densities in coastal areas and on islands and proposes that a territory on the seashore affords a territorial advantage of a factor between three and four compared with mainland areas (Tindale 1974:llZ). 'Societies under siege' can have considerably higher population densities (see for example Clark and Haswell 1967:50-51 and Bronson 1972, 1975:64-65) than surrounding populations with the same technology. Average population density figures remain just that - they do not disclose interesting historical or geographical irregularities.

Jones (1976) concluded that a population of 300-400 would not be viable in the long term. On the other hand micro-simulation studies ( ~ y k e and MacCluer 1973; Crawford and Workman 1973) indicate that small populations can survive for long periods especially when variations are allowed in some social factors (for example there is no strict monogamy, extramarital sex is allowed and there is low fertility and low mortality lack 1978). There is little empirical evidence for either case; both need closer investigation. Also it is generally thought that inbreeding will quickly and negatively affect a small isolated population but both Livingstone (1969) and Mayr (1954:173) have argued that this is not inevitable. Small populations take a gamble but they sometimes succeed.

There is enough evidence to propose that the Keppel Islands were permanently occupied by a small population which was semi, not totally, isolated from the mainland (see Roth 1898:5).

Five to six kilometres has been suggested as a limiting distance for bark canoes ones 1976). The shortest direct route to South Keppel Island is 13km and indirect 4.5km to Pelican Island and then 8.5km to South Keppel. Winds and currents have yet to be investigated but the distance involved would have encouraged some isolation.

If the Keppel Islanders were not isolated one would have to explain the physical, cultural and linguistic differences noted above as being due to local adaptation to an island environment and in fact most of the cultural/exploitatve factors could be accounted for in these terms. For example, given the landlcoast ratio one would expect an emphasis on marine resources and this is seen in the archaeological record and in the cultural material in the Roth collection in Sydney. However, some degree of isolation must be introduced to explain the physical and linguistic differences. A small founder population isolated on an island may undergo a

'genetic revolution' and become appreciably different from a mainland population in 'a relatively short time' (Mayr 1967:371) so the period of isolation need not be great, On the other hand, present sea levels in this area were established by 5000BP (Cook and Polach 1973) so the Keppel Islanders could have been isolated just prior to this.

Further speculation is possible concerning some cultural items from the Keppels. Some items (e.g. fish hooks, stone drills) do not show obvious parallels with adjacent mainland areas and cannot be related to isolation from these areas.

Other explanations could be suggested for these differences and for the physical differences in the population. One suggestion made is that the Keppel Islanders represent a group of runaway Kanakas. There is little support for this. The first Kanakas did not arrive in Brisbane until 1863 and in Rockhampton until 1867 (Holthouse 1969). The Keppels were occupied for more than 100 years before this. The Bulletin report in 1867 already indicates something distinctive about the Keppel Islanders. Roth did not detect any Kanaka influence. The language and the skulls have been described as Australian but with variations.

A second possibility revolves around the question of later Melanesian influences in Australian prehistory. Such a possibility has long been expressed but found little favour, especially in recent years. In fact there is an increasing tendency to stress internal developments (White and O'Connell 1979). Certainly at present there is no evidence for Melanesians or others appearing on the Queensland coast though this is within the realm of possibility. Archaeologists in the Pacific work within a framework of expecting isolated boat loads of people arriving over hundreds of kilometres. In Australia it would not be necessary to have people or canoes arriving along the coast but simply for genes and cultural items to flow in through Cape York and along the coast. For example, in an analysis of Queensland skull traits Larnach and Macintosh (1970) found evidence of a cline in Papuan characteristics that were strongest towards the Cape and declined southward. They saw this as not necessarily representing the movement of people, but genes. An analogous cultural flow situation could have existed. The Keppel Islands are in a position to have 'caught', and retained in isolation, a number of cultural items flowing along the Queensland coast. This is highly speculative but does fit well with a theoretical model of island biogeography (see MacArthur and Wilson 1967 for a discussion of 'stepping-stone' islands) and will remain a focus of further investigations.

WHAT'S NEXT

A fascinating historical and archaeological picture has been outlined for the Keppels. We have a lot to do, We need a sequence of dates for Mazie Bay and identification and quantification of the considerable quantities of material collected from that site. In June/July 1980 I hope to return to South Keppel to make systematic surface collections from all sites located and undertake test excavations when appropriate. My overall orientation has changed somewhat. I no longer see a need to 'prove' the historical case for isolation. That to some extent stands on its own. Accepting that the Keppel Islanders were semi-isolated the focus of investigations will

c e n t r e on e x p l o i t a t i v e p a t t e r n s by a sma l l popu la t ion i n a l i m i t e d env i ronmen t .

ADDENDUM

S i n c e w r i t i n g t h i s paper f i v e t e n t a t i v e C14 d a t e s on s h e l l have been r e c e i v e d ( ~ o h n Head p e r s . corm., Radiocarbon Labora to ry , C a n b e r r a ) . The b a s e o f t h e b u r i e d s o i l d e s c r i b e d above gave i d e n t i c a l d a t e s o f c l o s e t o 4000BP i n bo th squa re A1 ( n e a r t h e t o p o f t h e r i d g e ) and A5 ( t h e squa re midway down t h e r i d g e ) . I n A5 t h e r e i s a lmos t a m e t r e more of o c c u p a t i o n d e p o s i t s below t h e d a t e s o i t would be r e a s o n a b l e t o expec t i n i t i a l occupa t ion of t h e i s l a n d s back t o pe rhaps 5000BP a s a rgued above on t h e b a s i s o f s e a l e v e l changes . The t o p o f t h e b u r i e d s o i l i n A5 h a s produced a d a t e of around 3500BP. D i s c u s s i o n s w i t h P e t e r Flood (Department o f Geology, U n i v e r s i t y o f Queens land) i n d i c a t e t h i s d a t e i s of major i n t e r e s t . He h a s a number o f s i m i l a r d a t e s from t h e Queensland c o a s t and i s l a n d s and s u g g e s t s some major envi ronmenta l change occu r red a t t h i s p e r i o d . It h a s a l r e a d y been noted above t h a t t h e r e was a major d i f f e r e n c e i n t h e n a t u r e o f t h e s i t e above and below t h e b u r i e d s o i l and t h e d a t e c o n f i r m s t h i s . The s i t e a t Mazie Bay o f f e r s t h e p o t e n t i a l t o uncover what t h e env i ronmen ta l change was and how p e o p l e a d a p t e d t o i t . The env i ronmen ta l change hypo thes i sed above f o r Wreck Beach might be expec t ed t o d a t e t o t h i s pe r iod a l s o .

A n a l y s i s o f t h e f i n d s h a s c o n t i n u e d . The most i n t e r e s t i n g d i s c o v e r i e s have been a s h e l l d i s c from A3 (40-50cm d e p t h ) and a s h e l l f i s h hook ( l 5 m a c r o s s ) from A2 a t 20-25cm dep th . These a r e ? o f p e a r l s h e l l ( P i n c t a d a sp . ) and a r e s i m i l a r t o t h o s e d e s c r i b e d by Roth f o r t h e Keppels and B a n f i e l d (1909:58-59) f o r Dunk I s l a n d . S i m i l a r f i s h hooks a r e no ted from Durras North d a t e d a t 700BP and a t Bass P o i n t a t 600 y r s BP ( ~ u l v a n e y 1975: 102) . On p r e s e n t ev idence t h e Mazie Bay s h e l l d i s c , i f n o t t h e f i s h hook i t s e l f , would d a t e t o somewhere between 3000-2500BP. (NB: t h e d a t e s a r e p r e l i m i n a r y ; f i n a l checked d a t e s w i l l be pub l i shed i n d e t a i l when t h e y become a v a i l a b l e . )

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The c o n s i d e r a b l e number of peop le who have a l r e a d y a s s i s t e d me w i t h t h i s p r o j e c t w i l l be acknowledged i n due c o u r s e . For immediate h e l p w i th t h i s pape r I would l i k e t o thank Nicky H o r s f a l l .

Department of Anthropology U n i v e r s i t y of Queensland

BIBLIOGRAPHY

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B e a g l e h o l e , J . C . ( e d . ) 1955 The J o u r n a l s of Cap ta in James Cook on h i s Voyages o f D i scove ry . Vol.1. Hakluyt S o c i e t y , Cambridge -p-

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Beaglehole, J.C. 1963 Endeavour Journal of Joseph Banks 1768-1771. Angus and Robertson

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Bird, W.H. 1910 Some Remarks on the grammatical construction of the Chowie Language, as spoken by the Buccaneer Islanders, North-Western Australia. Anthropos 5:454-56

Black, S. 1978 Polynesian Outlives: a study in the survival of small populations. & I. Hodder (ed .) Simulation Studies in Archaeology, pp.63-76. Cambridge University Press

Bronson, B. 1972 Farm Labour and the Evolution of Food Production. In B. Spooner (ed.) Population Growth: Anthropological - Implications, pp.190-218. Massachusetts Institute of Technology

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