Pettigrew Jack
School of Biomedical Sciences and Queensland Brain Institute, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia.
Clin Exp Optom. 2011 Sep;94(5):403-17. doi: 10.1111/j.1444-0938.2011.00648.x.
Interpreting the symbols found in the rock art of an extinct culture is hampered by the fact that such symbols are culturally determined. How does one break the circularity inherent in the fact that the knowledge of both the symbols and the culture comes from the same source? In this study, the circularity is broken for the Bradshaw rock art of the Kimberley by seeking anchors from outside the culture.
Bradshaw rock art in the Kimberley region of Australia and Sandawe rock art in the Kolo region of Eastern Tanzania were surveyed in six visits on foot, by vehicle, by helicopter and from published or shared images, as well as from the published and online images of Khoisan rock art.
Uniquely shared images between Bradshaw and Sandawe art, such as the 'mushroom head' symbol of psilocybin use, link the two cultures and indicate that they were shamanistic. Therefore, many mysterious features in the art can be understood in terms of trance visualisations. A number of other features uniquely link Bradshaw and Sandawe cultures, such as a special affinity for small mammals. There are also many references to baobabs in early Bradshaw art but not later. This can be explained in the context of the Toba super-volcano, the likely human transport of baobabs to the Kimberley and the extraordinary utility of the baobab.
Many more mysterious symbols in Bradshaw rock art might await interpretation using the approaches adopted here.
解读已灭绝文化的岩石艺术中发现的符号受到这样一个事实的阻碍，即这些符号是由文化决定的。鉴于符号和文化的知识都来自同一来源，如何打破这种固有的循环性呢？在本研究中，通过从该文化外部寻找锚点，打破了金伯利地区布拉德肖岩石艺术的循环性。
对澳大利亚金伯利地区的布拉德肖岩石艺术和坦桑尼亚东部科洛地区的桑达韦岩石艺术进行了六次实地考察，考察方式包括徒步、乘车、乘直升机以及通过已发表或共享的图像，还有科伊桑岩石艺术的已发表和在线图像。
布拉德肖艺术和桑达韦艺术之间独特共享的图像，比如使用裸盖菇素的“蘑菇头”符号，将这两种文化联系起来，并表明它们具有萨满教性质。因此，艺术中的许多神秘特征可以从恍惚幻觉的角度来理解。还有一些其他特征独特地将布拉德肖文化和桑达韦文化联系起来，比如对小型哺乳动物的特殊喜爱。早期的布拉德肖艺术中有许多关于猴面包树的描绘，但后期没有。这可以在托巴超级火山的背景下得到解释，猴面包树可能是人类带到金伯利地区的，而且猴面包树具有非凡的用途。
布拉德肖岩石艺术中可能还有更多神秘符号有待用这里采用的方法来解读。
