Berndt Museum of Anthropology
The South-West Collections
The Region
Aboriginal groups in the South-West region of Western Australia were the first to experience the effects of close European settlement in this State. The resulting social dislocation irrevocably altered the cultural orientation of these groups. Many were attracted to the fringes of European settlements. Other groups forcibly resisted the occupation of their lands. South-West Aboriginal groups, who collectively use the term Nyungar (or Noongah) for themselves, today live in cities and towns throughout the region, as well as in rural areas.The Berndt Museum has over 300 objects from the South-West region. These include weapons, tools and paintings. The childrenâs paintings from Carrolup are particularly significant.
A map of the South-West region will be available shortly.
Highlights
Some highlights of the South-West collections can be seen in the Virtual Tour.The collections also featured in the travelling exhibition, Nyungar landscapes.
Objects Held
Many items are multi-purpose, being used for fighting, hunting and music.Collections of stone materials are usually given a single registration number.
| Object Type | Number |
| Anthropologica | 21 |
| Ritual | 1 |
| Tools | 15 |
| Toys/childrenâs paintings | 207 |
| Weapons | 20 |
| Souvenir art | 9 |
| Fine art (e.g. acrylic paintings) | 70 |
| TOTAL | 343 |
Photographic Collections
The Museum has an extensive photographic collection. It contains photographs, negatives and colour slides, and consists of many small collections donated to the Museum.The following collections contain significant South-West material.
| Collector | Date |
Location |
| AAPA | 1936 |
Moore River |
| Baines | 1980 |
South-West |
| Bird | 1981 |
South-West |
| Chesson | 1930s |
Moore River |
| Clifton | 1870s |
Moore River |
| Edenburg | 1940s-1950s |
Carrolup |
| McCaskill | 1975 |
Murchison |
| Neville * | 1915-1953 |
Western Australia |
| Perrot | 1930s |
Moore River |
| Phillips | 1940s-1950s |
Carrolup |
| Watkins | 1927 |
Murchison |
| White-Hardy | 1940s-1950s |
Carrolup |
| Winmar | 1940s-1960s |
Badjaling |
* A.O. Neville was the Chief Protector of Aborigines between 1915 and 1953. Station owners, missionaries and welfare workers from all over Western Australia sent him their photographs to use in his public talks.
