World’s Oldest Known Ritual Site Discovered, Reveals an Aboriginal Culture That Was Passed Down for 500 Generations

Across the wide stretches of southeastern Australia, nestled within the limestone walls of Cloggs Cave, echoes of enriching culture thousands of years old have lain in wait. Australia’s Indigenous history has long been woven into the land, passed down through stories, dances, and rituals—often through symbols, stated Popular Science.

A stunning discovery in Australia offers just that. Researchers, in close collaboration with the GunaiKurnai Land and Waters Aboriginal Corporation (GLaWAC), have unraveled what is believed to be the oldest known culturally transmitted ritual in the whole wide world—dated between 10,000 and 12,000 years ago. Deep down, two seemingly simple sticks preserved within miniature fireplaces deep in Cloggs Cave revealed a stunning history. Bruno David, lead archaeologist, shared, "It is remarkable to find largely intact installations, replete with their wooden artifacts made of Casuarina wood that had been superbly preserved together with their smeared animal or human fat…That the details of these archaeological findings matched exactly the descriptions of ethnographically described 19th century GunaiKurnai ritual practices, indicating 12,000 years of cultural transmission of ritual knowledge is simply astonishing," stated Popular Science.

Intriguingly, these artifacts are far more than ancient leftovers—they seem to resemble a specific ritual practice of the GunaiKurnai people, recorded in the 19th century by ethnographer Alfred Howitt. The ceremony is known to be led by Mulla-mullung, or spiritual doctors. The ritual involved smearing a specially shaped stick with fat and placing it before a fire until it toppled. The purpose, you may think. Healing—or in some cases, harm. Uncle Russell Mullett, Gunaikurnai Elder and co-author of the study noted, "These rituals were performed by Mulla-mullung, akin to modern doctors, to heal people, or to place a spell on them…Such rituals could be used for healing or for harm, depending on the circumstances of each ceremony."

Mullett further added, "Australian Aboriginal societies do not have 'wars of conquest' such as happened in many other parts of the world. Rather, across all of Australia, Aboriginal peoples have continued living ties with their Country–the land, waters, air, and sky of their ancestral lands…They are connected to all living things on Country through their ancestral beings and have an intrinsic responsibility to care for Country. Each Aboriginal group has its own language, dances, world views, etc, some of which are shared with neighboring groups, others not. That means that you don’t have population movements like you do in many other parts of the world, but rather very long and continuous connections with places, people, and cultural practices." Scientific analysis of the sticks confirmed they were made from the dense Casuarina tree and bore traces of fatty acids—solid proof of ritual preparation, stated Live Science.

Radiocarbon dating revealed their astonishing age: one between 11,930 and 12,440 years old, the other between 10,870 and 11,210 years old. Mullet and David shared, "This research has been a close partnership between Gunaikurnai Traditional Owners and university researchers from the start…If we were to identify a single key dimension for the research’s success, it’s the respectful partnership approach between everyone…this kind of research can only happen with mutual respect," stated Popular Science.