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The Dawn of Time: Australian Aboriginal Myths
7" X 10 1/2" WITH 79 PAGES - GREAT COLORED PICTURES
79 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1969
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About the author
Charles P. Mountford
51 books1 followerCharles Pearcy "Monty" Mountford OBE was an Australian anthropologist and photographer. He is known for his pioneering work on Indigenous Australians and his depictions and descriptions of their art. He also led the American-Australian Scientific Expedition to Arnhem Land.
Mountford's written works, along with those by contemporaries, foreshadowed subsequent scholarly investigations like T.G.H. Strehlow's Journey to Horseshoe Bend (1969) and iconic late-20th-century works such as Stephen Muecke, Krim Benterrak, and Paddy Roe's Reading the Country: Introduction to Nomadology (1984).
Mountford's written works, along with those by contemporaries, foreshadowed subsequent scholarly investigations like T.G.H. Strehlow's Journey to Horseshoe Bend (1969) and iconic late-20th-century works such as Stephen Muecke, Krim Benterrak, and Paddy Roe's Reading the Country: Introduction to Nomadology (1984).
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
April 22, 2025
A nice collection of illustrated Dreamtime stories from around Aus that I found secondhand.
I had heard slightly different versions of similar origin stories before, but to be fair there were countless tribes spread out across a huge area of land and they probably all had their own lore.
Spears featured in a lot of the stories; like in the creation of gum trees, echidnas and the blowhole of whales.
Fire was thought to be ‘hidden’ in wood which I thought was a creative perspective.
I wonder whether Dreamtime stories started out as real knowledge to be passed down that evolved to have supernatural elements to make them more entertaining and memorable to retell.
It’s amazing they have been shared mostly by word of mouth for potentially up to sixty-five thousand years. In my quest to read the most ancient human stories available these must be right up there.
Among my favourites were when magpies brought light to the sky in the morning through their melodious song, and when two hunters ascended into the heavens to form the southern cross constellation while trying to escape a bushfire.
I had heard slightly different versions of similar origin stories before, but to be fair there were countless tribes spread out across a huge area of land and they probably all had their own lore.
Spears featured in a lot of the stories; like in the creation of gum trees, echidnas and the blowhole of whales.
Fire was thought to be ‘hidden’ in wood which I thought was a creative perspective.
I wonder whether Dreamtime stories started out as real knowledge to be passed down that evolved to have supernatural elements to make them more entertaining and memorable to retell.
It’s amazing they have been shared mostly by word of mouth for potentially up to sixty-five thousand years. In my quest to read the most ancient human stories available these must be right up there.
Among my favourites were when magpies brought light to the sky in the morning through their melodious song, and when two hunters ascended into the heavens to form the southern cross constellation while trying to escape a bushfire.
September 20, 2010
This series by Mountford and Roberts are beautifully illustrated with gorgeous haunting paintings. I have the original editions and the Dreamtime stories come from all over Australia.
March 16, 2024
Great compilation of Australian aboriginal myths.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews