Lake Mungo: Unearthing Australia's Ancient secrets

In the heart of New South Wales, Australia, lies a dried-up lake known as Lake Mungo, which has been devoid of water for roughly 15,000 years.

This barren site has proven to be a treasure trove for archaeologists.

In 1968, a geologist named Jim Bowler made a startling discovery, unearthing the remains of a young woman. She was soon named ‘Mungo Lady'.

Fascinatingly, she had been buried in an extraordinary way. There was clear evidence that her body had been cremated before burial, a ritual that was highly unusual for the time.

Over the years, the region has yielded more than 130 ancient human remains, underscoring its archaeological significance.

Six years later, in 1974, Bowler made a second groundbreaking discovery, this time unearthing the remains of a man.

Consistent with the first find, he was christened ‘Mungo Man'. While both Mungo Man and Mungo Lady were presumed to be First Nations people, the precise time they were buried by Lake Mungo was initially unclear.

To establish the age of these skeletons, Carbon-14 tests were performed. However, dating the remains has been a subject of ongoing debate.

Early estimates suggested that Mungo Man and Mungo Lady died around 40,000 years ago, but subsequent analyses propose they might be older, possibly around 42,000 to 45,000 years old.

Notwithstanding, the oldest known human remains in Australia are found at Madjedbebe in the Northern Territory, dating back to approximately 65,000 years ago.

Extensive archaeological work has revealed that Mungo Man and Mungo Lady were not the only inhabitants of this region.

When Lake Mungo still held water, the site was a hub of activity for early humans.

An array of artifacts discovered around the former lake's edge, including shellfish remains, fossilised fish, and stone tools, indicates that humans regularly visited Mungo.

Some of these relics date back to the last ice age.

Like Mungo Lady, Mungo Man had been buried in a unique way. His arms were stretched out straight and crossed over his body, and his remains were coated in red ochre before burial.

Intriguingly, red ochre cannot be found near Lake Mungo, suggesting that the people of Mungo Man’s community had transported it from over 200 kilometres away, an indication of complex rituals and resource networks among these early humans.

The remains of Mungo Man were transferred to the Australian National University in Canberra for comprehensive study.

Analyses revealed that he would have stood over 170cm tall and was likely around 50 years old at the time of his death.

The findings of Mungo Lady and Man have offered archaeologists a unique window into human migrations into Australia.

The evidence of human habitation from such a distant past is exceedingly rare and invaluable to our understanding of human history.

However, the removal of these ancestors from their traditional land has been a contentious issue for the First Nations people living today.

After decades of campaigning, Mungo Man's remains were finally returned to the care of the indigenous custodians in 2017, marking a significant milestone in the recognition and respect for indigenous heritage and cultural rights.