Milmilngkan site, 2007
Balang Nakurulk (Mr Mawurndjul)
natural earth pigments on eucalyptus bark
124.0 x 72.0 cm (irregular)
bears inscription on label attached verso: artist's name, subject, medium, size, language group and Maningrida Arts and Culture cat. 3025-07
Maningrida Arts and Culture, Maningrida, Northern Territory (label attached verso)
Annandale Galleries, Sydney (label attached verso)
Private collection, Victoria
This work is accompanied by a certificate of authenticity from Maningrida Arts and Culture attached verso which states:
'On this particular bark painting, John Mawurndjul has depicted sacred sites at Milmilngkan.
JM: Yoh Milmilngkan maneh yina kunronj manekke mane yi-na. Ka-bo-bebme. Djai njamed 'spring'.
Yes, this is the site at Milmilngkan and these represent water, you can see here. The water comes out [the little round dots are water/springs]. They are springs.
Kam-borrolkan Milmilngkan kunred but manekke njamed ka-karrme man-djirndjim spring kunronj kam-bobebme. Ngalyod might be kanjdji mayh ka-yo ngalyod. Mani rarrk ngabimbom. Kunred manekke. Kuning ka-yime bonj ka-borrohdolkan nga-nang boyen.
The water comes out at Milmilngkan and there are springs there surrounded by water pandanus (Pandanus aquaticus) where the water comes out of the ground. This might be caused by rainbow serpents which live under the ground there. This is all cross-hatched here. The cross-hatching represents the country there. That's what happens there, I've recently seen the water coming up out of the ground there.'