Mako Djang
Print
1999 (made)
1999 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Peter Nabarlambarl is one of an older generation of Aboriginal artists who have achieved considerable recognition outside Australia. His subjects are drawn form Aboriginal myth. This print shows the male Rainbow Serpent, Ngaloyd, flanked by three didgeridoos or ‘mako’.
According to Aboriginal mythology, the mother Rainbow Serpent, after entering mainland Australia from the sea, metamorphosed into the Earth Mother and gave birth to many children, including Ngaloyd. He takes many forms but usually has a snake-like body and a head like a crocodile with horny spikes. He is credited with the formation of the landscape, his serpent form enabling him to shift earth.
Associated with watering holes, land, social relationships and fertility, the Rainbow Serpent is the subject of many images in a society where land use and ownership are key issues. Although some of these images are thought to be by human hand, others are seen as traces left by the serpent himself.
According to Aboriginal mythology, the mother Rainbow Serpent, after entering mainland Australia from the sea, metamorphosed into the Earth Mother and gave birth to many children, including Ngaloyd. He takes many forms but usually has a snake-like body and a head like a crocodile with horny spikes. He is credited with the formation of the landscape, his serpent form enabling him to shift earth.
Associated with watering holes, land, social relationships and fertility, the Rainbow Serpent is the subject of many images in a society where land use and ownership are key issues. Although some of these images are thought to be by human hand, others are seen as traces left by the serpent himself.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Titles |
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| Materials and techniques | Brush-bite etching with colour printing ink |
| Brief description | 'Mako Djang' ('Didgeridoos and sacred place'), etching in red linear criss-cross pattern of snake like creature and three digeridoos, by Peter Nabarlambarl, Darwin, 1999 |
| Physical description | Etching printed in red. An image of a serpent like creature bent in a closed 'V' shape, with head and tail uppermost. On his left are two long stick like shapes and to his right a third stick like shape. Both the body of the serpent and the stick like shapes ( which are didgeridoos) are depicted in triangles of diagonal red stripes. |
| Dimensions |
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| Production type | Limited edition |
| Copy number | 77/99 |
| Marks and inscriptions |
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| Credit line | Purchased through the Julie and Robert Breckman Print Fund |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Summary | Peter Nabarlambarl is one of an older generation of Aboriginal artists who have achieved considerable recognition outside Australia. His subjects are drawn form Aboriginal myth. This print shows the male Rainbow Serpent, Ngaloyd, flanked by three didgeridoos or ‘mako’. According to Aboriginal mythology, the mother Rainbow Serpent, after entering mainland Australia from the sea, metamorphosed into the Earth Mother and gave birth to many children, including Ngaloyd. He takes many forms but usually has a snake-like body and a head like a crocodile with horny spikes. He is credited with the formation of the landscape, his serpent form enabling him to shift earth. Associated with watering holes, land, social relationships and fertility, the Rainbow Serpent is the subject of many images in a society where land use and ownership are key issues. Although some of these images are thought to be by human hand, others are seen as traces left by the serpent himself. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | E.256-2005 |
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| Record created | November 26, 2005 |
| Record URL |
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