Destruction of heritage or secular iconoclasm? The case of Dampier Archipelago Rock Art

The Dampier Archipelago (Western Australia) consists of 42 islands; Dampier Island is the largest. After large deposits of iron ore were discovered in the 1960s, and the ban to export it was lifted in December 1960, several companies were established in the area. Two towns were built: Dampier (1965) and Karratha (1968) to accommodate the growing population. An artiÀ cial causeway was built to connect the island to the mainland. The area was chosen to host the industrial facilities to process the iron ore, instead of Depuch Island, located 100 km north of the archipelago. To some this decision is the reason that between 5% and 25% of the rock art has been already destroyed or removed due to industrial action.1 Removal is the same as destruction, as rock art should always remain in situ in order to convey its meaning. In 1979 the name was changed to Burrup Peninsula, as it is known today. Its Aboriginal name is Murujuga, which means »hip bone sticks out.« McDonald and Veth believe that up to 2004, less than 14% of land on the peninsula had been impacted.2 The government of Western Australia, through the Department of Indigenous AɆ airs, acknowledges that between 1972 and 2005, 7.2% petroglyphs (engravings made onto the boulders) and 4% of Aboriginal sites3 have been destroyed, while 1682 petroglyphs and 119 sites have been relocated. On the other hand, up to 2008 more than 3000 Aboriginal sites had been registered at the Department of Aboriginal AɆ airs. It is arguably the »largest rock art site in the world;« allegedly it contains up to one million petroglyphs.