MILMILNGKAN SITE, 2007
JOHN MAWURNDJUL
natural ochres on eucalyptus tetradonta bark
126.5 x 50.0 cm (irregular)
bears inscription on label attached verso: artist's name, subject, medium, size, language group and Maningrida Arts and Culture cat. 3847-07
Commissioned by Maningrida Arts and Culture, Maningrida, Northern Territory (label attached verso)
Palya Art, Darwin cat. 2171 (label attached verso)
Private collection, Victoria
This work is accompanied by a certificate of authenticity from Maningrida Arts and Culture 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. Ojai 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-bormlkan Milmilngkan kunred but manekke njamed ka-karrme- man-:-djimdjim· spring kunronj kam-bobebme. Ngalyod might be kanjdji mayh ka-yo ngalyod. Mani rarrk nga-bimbom. 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.