| My old people would carry their dead with them for several years. They would wrap the body in tea tree bark or cabbage palm leaves and place it in forks of a tree or on a platform. They needed to make sure the person was truly dead. Our old people could communicate with the dead person. We never left the body alone keeping the spirit calm. It was a way of showing respect and how much they missed them. In the wet season the body was kept in the family humpy and everyone would sleep around it. This prevented the spirit from getting up and moving around. Eventually it was buried or cremated on sacred ground. If it was thought the death was caused by sorcery a spear fight could take place immediately after cremation. |
| Artist Kim Norman |
| 29 x 49 cm Limited edition etching on paper |
| Price includes postage within Australia |