Long ago, four giants arrived in southeastern Australia.
While three decided to continue their journey across the continent, a giant named Budj Bim stayed, his body was transformed into a volcano and his long teeth became lava.
A new scientific study shows that the aboriginal legend of Gunditjmara about the birth of the Budj Bim volcano, also known as Mount Eccles, has some basis
In fact, geologists discovered that the now extinct volcano near Macarthur, in southwest Victoria, Australia, and another nearby volcano formed through a rapid series of eruptions about 37,000 years ago, suggesting that the myth may be the oldest story still told today.
The new study is, therefore, an interesting proposal to think about these oral traditions that survive for tens of thousands of years.
Now, if you want to get a deeper understanding of Ancient Giants, I recommend you read Steve Quayle’s excellent book called Genesis 6 Giants – Volume 2 and watch his movie True Legends – Episode 3: Holocaust of Giants.
How long did Gunditjmara live near the Budj Bim volcano?
It’s not clear. The oldest accepted evidence of human occupation dates back to 13,000 years in the area.
However, archaeologists reported finding a stone ax near the ancient Tower Hill volcano in the region. As found under volcanic rocks, anthropologists suggest that humans lived there before the eruption.
Sudden formation of Budj Bim and Tower Hill volcanoes
In the new study , the scientists dated the volcanic rocks of Tower Hill and those of Budj Bim, located just 40 kilometers northwest.
The data suggests that both volcanoes formed 37,000 years ago very suddenly.
The shocking dual eruptions may have terrified residents, causing the story of the four giants.
And there have been no other major volcanic eruptions in the area in the intervening years that could have inspired the stories.
Giants in Australia
It tells the story of Dr. Rex Gilroy, director of the Mount York Natural History Museum in Mount Victoria, NSW, who dug the area for several years to gather enough evidence about a race of giants who once lived there.
“Near Bathurst, Dr. Gilroy discovered some stone implements, hand axes, sticks, crushers, tiles, knives and other tools so large that only giants with extra-large hands and strength could have made beneficial use of them.
“He also discovered some giant molars and other fossilized footprints that were up to thirty inches long. “The implications are,” he wrote in an article detailing his archeological findings, “that men 12 to 20 feet tall once roamed this continent. ”
According to the conversation, a family of giants roasted in a series of volcanic craters in southern Australia:
“In southern Australia, once lived a family of giants who made their home in a succession of volcanic craters. They cooked their food in these craters known as “Craitbul ovens”, after one of the giants. ”
Also according to Mysterious Australia, aboriginal folklore is full of traditions about giant men and women:
“The Tjangara of tribal folklore from Western Australia is a huge, 10-foot-tall hairy beast that wanders through the interior armed with a large stone club, killing and eating anyone who is.
And what about the “Yowie” or “Big Hairy Man”, a hairy beast like a man known in a wide area of eastern Australia that has even been seen recently ”
Again, for a deeper understanding of Ancient Giants, I recommend reading the excellent book by giant specialist Steve Quayle called Genesis 6 Giants – Volume 2 and watching his movie True Legends – Episode 3: Holocaust of Giants.
How to understand the longevity of Australian indigenous oral histories?
As with all First Nations around the world, their stories, heritage, identity and survival are connected to their traditional lands and waters.
So, do these myths and legends only highlight the deep ties that these communities had with nature and their country? Or are they also reflecting the truth?
