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At the Ewaninga Rock Carvings Conservation Reserve, an important archaeological site near the city of Alice Springs in the Northern Territory, locum tenens can get a glimpse into rock art that reflects Australia's ancient history.
The reserve consists of an area of sand dunes, rocky outcroppings and a claypan, with this latter feature surrounded by rocks festooned with prehistoric art. These stones are considered to be a prime example of central Australian rock carvings, and archaeologists have found more than 1,000 petroglyphs spread around the area.
The carvings come in a variety of shapes, including circles, lines and geometric motifs similar to those elsewhere in the country. Other petroglyphs are said to represent a variety of animal tracks.
Scientists have not come to an agreement on an exact figure for the age of the carvings, but they all agree that they are very old. An examination of their motifs and weathering patterns suggests that they are up to 30,000 years in age, while comparisons to other art of the same style indicates that they may have been carved as much as 40,000 years ago.