Aboriginal Symbols and their Meanings

QANTAS

This post provides a brief insight into Aboriginal symbols with all images and art coming from 'Central Art - Aboriginal Art Store'.

http://www.aboriginalartstore.com.au/aboriginal-art-culture/aboriginal-art/

If you this post stirs your interest in Aboriginal art and culture we would encourage you to visit the Central Art Gallery here:

http://www.aboriginalartstore.com.au/galleries/

Many of the symbols used by Aboriginal artists are a variation of lines or dots. Similar symbols can have multiple meanings according to the art region and the elaborate combination of these can tell complex Dreamtime stories.

This symbol represents the tracks of a dingo, which is an Australian native dog.

Roundels depicted in Aboriginal artworks can be camp site or water hole. These sites are culturally significant to Australian Aboriginal people living in Central Australia.

These circles have multiple interpretations: ants (honey ants), fruits, flowers or eggs. These are gathered by Australian Aboriginal women as a food source or used as a bush medicine.

This icon represents the tracks of the goanna. Aboriginal people hunt the goanna by following its tracks in the sand. The Goanna and its eggs are a principal food source (bush tucker).

(There are various symbols depicting the goanna track, depending on the artist's region)

These symbols rockhole, cloud or nest are depicted in Australian Aboriginal artwork. They can have multiple meanings depending on the artist's Dreaming.

This icon represents meeting place (concentric circles) and journey path (lines) . The meeting place is culturally a significant site to Aboriginal men and women.

It is a place where Aboriginal people meet, gather around, sitting in circles.

For more information and symbols:

http://www.aboriginalartstore.com.au/aboriginal-art-culture/aboriginal-symbols-glossary/aboriginal-symbols-and-their-meanings/