Wellington Range is an

escarpment An escarpment is a steep slope or long cliff that forms as a result of faulting or erosion and separates two relatively level areas having different elevations. Due to the similarity, the term '' scarp'' may mistakenly be incorrectly used inte ...

whose western extension forms part of a sandstone

plateau In geology and physical geography, a plateau (; ; : plateaus or plateaux), also called a high plain or a tableland, is an area of a highland consisting of flat terrain that is raised sharply above the surrounding area on at least one side. ...

, situated in western

Arnhem Land Arnhem Land is a historical region of the Northern Territory of Australia. It is located in the north-eastern corner of the territory and is around from the territorial capital, Darwin, Northern Territory, Darwin. In 1623, Dutch East India Compa ...

in the

Northern Territory The Northern Territory (abbreviated as NT; known formally as the Northern Territory of Australia and informally as the Territory) is an states and territories of Australia, Australian internal territory in the central and central-northern regi ...

of Australia. It lies approximately north-north-east of

Jabiru The jabiru ( or ; ''Jabiru mycteria'') is a large stork found in the Americas from Mexico to Argentina, except west of the Andes. It sometimes wanders into the United States, usually in Texas, but has also been reported in Mississippi, Oklahoma ...

(at least by road). The nearest settlement accessible by road is

Gunbalanya Gunbalanya (also spelt Kunbarlanja, and historically referred to as Oenpelli) is a town in west Arnhem Land in the Northern Territory of Australia, about east of Darwin. The main language spoken in the community is Kunwinjku (a dialect of Bin ...

, about away. (While Warruwi on South Goulburn Island is actually closer, around 40 km north-east, there is no road access from there.) Wellington Range consists of

sandstone Sandstone is a Clastic rock#Sedimentary clastic rocks, clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of grain size, sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate mineral, silicate grains, Cementation (geology), cemented together by another mineral. Sand ...

and basal conglomerates of the Kombolgie subgroup. Geologically, the area belongs to the "north-western extension of the Arnhem Shelf in the northern

McArthur Basin The McArthur Basin is a large intracratonic sedimentary basin in northern Australia, with an exposed area of about 180,000 km2. Most of it lies within the northeastern Northern Territory, but extends over the border into the state of Que ...

". There has been limited mineral exploration and there is no mining in the area. The Range lies at the northernmost part of the Arnhem Land Plateau. The

Maung people The Maung people, or Warruwi, are an Aboriginal Australian people living on the Goulburn Islands, in the Arafura Sea off the coast of the Northern Territory. Language Maung language, Maung is not one of the majority Pama-Nyungan languages, but b ...

are the

traditional owner Native title is the set of rights, recognised by Australian law, held by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander groups or individuals to land that derive from their maintenance of their traditional laws and customs. These Aboriginal title right ...

s of the area. The area is most known for its major

archaeological Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...

importance and its

Indigenous Australian rock art Indigenous Australian art includes art made by Aboriginal Australians and Torres Strait Islanders, including collaborations with others. It includes works in a wide range of media including painting on leaves, bark painting, wood carving, ro ...

, particularly in relation to early

Makassan contact with Australia Makassar people from the region of Sulawesi in Indonesia began visiting the coast of Northern Australia sometime around the middle of the 18th century, first in the Kimberley region, and some decades later in Arnhem Land. They were men who co ...

, with rock paintings of

firearms A firearm is any type of gun that uses an explosive charge and is designed to be readily carried and operated by an individual. The term is legally defined further in different countries (see legal definitions). The first firearms originated ...

and ships.

Glass beads Glass bead making has long traditions, with the oldest known beads dating over 3,000 years. People have been making beads out of glass since at least Ancient Roman times. Perhaps the earliest glass-like beads were Egyptian faience beads, a for ...

have also been found in the area, including a collection of headbands and necklaces made from such beads, found between 1925 and 1930 and now held by the

British Museum The British Museum is a Museum, public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is the largest in the world. It documents the story of human cu ...

. The rock art is extensive, and one study by archaeologists Paul Tacon, Sally K. May, and Daryl Wesley focuses on the Malarrak complex, a location of particular significance. Recorded in 2008, it includes a depiction of a prau and a knife of the style used by the

Makassan Makassar ( ), formerly Ujung Pandang ( ), is the capital of the Indonesian province of South Sulawesi. It is the largest city in the region of Eastern Indonesia and the country's fifth-largest urban center after Jakarta, Surabaya, Medan, and Ba ...

s, among other paintings. The Djulirri rock art complex is the largest site within the area of Maung speakers, where Ronald Lamilami is the senior traditional owner. There are over 3100 paintings, prints,

stencils Stencilling produces an image or pattern on a surface by applying pigment to a surface through an intermediate object, with designed holes in the intermediate object. The holes allow the pigment to reach only some parts of the surface creatin ...

and

beeswax Bee hive wax complex Beeswax (also known as cera alba) is a natural wax produced by honey bees of the genus ''Apis''. The wax is formed into scales by eight wax-producing glands in the abdominal segments of worker bees, which discard it in o ...

figures at the site, which is the biggest

pigment A pigment is a powder used to add or alter color or change visual appearance. Pigments are completely or nearly solubility, insoluble and reactivity (chemistry), chemically unreactive in water or another medium; in contrast, dyes are colored sub ...

rock art site in Australia. Recording of the art work started in 2008.

Coordinates

References

{{reflist Mountain ranges of the Northern Territory Rock art in Australia Arnhem Land