Drone shot of green landscape of Budj Bim
Photograph: Supplied
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Budj Bim Cultural Landscape

This UNESCO World Heritage listed site features more than 30,000 years of Gunditjmara history

Nicola Dowse
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Time Out says

Budj Bim Cultural Landscape is in southwestern Victoria, about an hour’s drive inland from Port Fairy. In 2019, Budj Bim was formally recognised on the UNESCO World Heritage List, making it the first world heritage property in Australia to be recognised solely for its Indigenous heritage. 

The site was recognised for its sophisticated aquaculture system devised by the Gunditjmara people 6,600 years ago. With dams, weirs and stone channels hundreds of metres long, the Budj Bim waterways enabled the Gunditjmara to catch eels throughout the year. The UNESCO World Heritage site also features the remains of 300 basalt stone houses, which showcase a former Gunditjmara permanent settlement. 

The cultural landscape is split into three components: Budj Bim (the northern component), Kurtonitj (the central component) and Tyrendarra (the southern component). Budj Bim means "big head" in Gunditjmara and features an inactive volcano that Gunditjmara believe last erupted somewhere between 30,000 and 39,000 years ago. 

The central component, Kurtonitj, comprises more than 350 hectares of marshland that is significant for its cultural, environmental and archaeological heritage. It's here that you can find stone channels and kooyang (eel) traps, as well as stone house sites and eel-smoking trees. And Tyrendarra, which features more stone aquaculture, is an important Gunditjmara ceremonial site, as well as somewhere that would be used as a meeting place or to camp. Notably, the landscape of Tyrendarra was created following an eruption from Budj Bim tens of thousands of years ago. 

Details

Address
Budj Bim National Park
Mt Eccles Rd
MacArthur
Melbourne
3286
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