Hunters, Aroona Station, South Australia, approximately 1854 / Adam Gustavus Ball

This work is likely to be the earliest known identifiable depiction of the Adnyamathanha by a European artist, and documents them soon after first contact. The work, showing cattle in the left-hand corner, foreshadows the dispossession of the Adnyamathanha by the establishment of Aroona Station and other pastoral development. Located 25km north of Wilpena Pound, the station was established in 1851 on the back of new laws allowing squatters to take up 14 year leases on land. As one of the earliest and most northern runs in the Flinders Rangers, Aroona was the forerunner to further agricultural and colonial expansion. Aroona is on Adnyamathanha country, belonging to the Kuyani, Wailpi, Yardliyawara and Pilatapa groups who share a common Dreaming, language and identity. While the individuals in 'Hunters, Aroona Station, South Australia, approximately 1854' aren't named or identified, they are most likely to be of the Adnyamathanha peoples.