Painted at Kalumburu, North Western Australia in 1977
Kim Akerman Collection
Mary Macha, Perth, Western Australia
The Thomas Vroom Collection, The Netherlands

Kim Akerman, Wanjina - Notes on some Iconic Ancestral Beings of the Northern Kimberley, //www.kimberleyfoundation.org.au/akerman-2014/ pp.162-163, p.162 illus.

This work was field collected by Kim Akerman and there is a photo of it at the time of collection which shows it in a very similar state to its current appearance. Some significant areas of old pigment loss, most prominently through the mid torso and the lower body, with some scattered losses elsewhere. A crude wire loop repair inserted through the bark from the lower centre margin which has been attached in order to hold a crack in the bark together. A crack to the facing left hand edge, running between the perimeter binding holes, some other small cracks and minor losses. As illustrated in the catalogue, all remaining pigments appear relatively stable.
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NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

This painting of the Spirit being Jilinya pulling kanenjeri/ankarijeri, or ‘cheeky yams’, from her vagina shows the fine infilling consisting of blocks of parallel lines seen occasionally in the rock art of the region. The ovate dotted forms connected like beads on a string represent the ‘hot’ or ‘cheeky’ yam called kunu/kanen (Dioscorea bulbifera). These yams need to be treated by cooking and leaching to rid them of toxins before they can be eaten.

There are many stories about the wicked spirit Jilinya, who, according to missionary linguist J.R.B. Love, was transformed into voracious praying mantises. Some people also say that Darwin Stick Insects (Eurycnema osiris) are also considered to be transformations of Jilinya and were called by that name, also known as mulumulunya from the hissing sound that they make.

KA