After 100 years, the Rotary Club of Greater Geelong respectfully returned a liyawil (waddy or club) to Dja Dja Wurrung Traditional Owners recently – restoring custody of the Cultural Heritage item to its rightful owners.
Jackson Dunolly-Lee, DJAARA Aboriginal Heritage Officer, with Barry Cooper, Rotary Club of Greater Geelong secretary.
Barry Cooper, secretary of the Greater Geelong Club visited Larnangurrak (Our place), DJAARA’s corporate and community centre in Bendigo, to hand the liyawil to Jackson Dunolly-Lee from DJAARA’s Malamiya (Cultural Heritage) team who cleansed it with smoke from Cherry Ballart and gum leaves.
The return of the important artefact was celebrated in ceremony during the Registered Aboriginal Party (RAP) Forum – a gathering of RAPs in Bendigo to discuss the protection of Cultural Heritage, hosted by DJAARA.
Djaara men performed a ceremony, in which the liyawil was smoked and officially returned to Dja Dja Wurrung People.
Aboriginal Heritage Officer Jackson Dunolly-Lee explained the importance of ceremony.
Djaara men performed a ceremony, in which the liyawil was smoked and officially returned to Dja Dja Wurrung People.
“It’s not just about the object coming back to Country, it’s also about doing ceremony, including the right protocols,” Mr Dunolly-Lee said.
“In language, we say ‘Dhelk Murrup (good spirit).”
According to newspaper reports in 1925, Bendigo Rotarian Mr M G Giudice had presented an ‘Aboriginal club’ to the president of the newly formed Geelong Rotary Club in July 1925.
A century later, Barry Cooper learned of the liyawil’s existence and decided to investigate.
“I did a bit of research, and this waddy belongs to Djaara people – it’s not ours,” Mr Cooper said.
“We’re delighted to return it. It’s been 100 years: it’s now time to go home. I’m really pleased we’ve done a smoking ceremony – that’s so important,” he added.
Rotary Club of Bendigo President Noel Hobley who also attended the ceremony at Larnangurrak was very supportive of the object’s return.
“To see the reaction of people here is very heartwarming,” Mr Hobley said.
The Rotary Club of Greater Geelong reaching out to return the liyawil to DJAARA is an important part of the ongoing process of truth-telling and healing.
Repatriating important cultural objects enables and strengthens Dja Dja Wurrung People’s ongoing right as Traditional Owners to maintain our cultural relationship to items.
To find out about Aboriginal object collections, Aboriginal places, and the process for repatriating items of Cultural Heritage, a fact sheet and FAQs about object collections is available from the Resources page of DJAARA’s website: Aboriginal Object Collections.
Information is also available from First Peoples – State Relations, which sits within the Victorian Department of Premier and Cabinet.
Liyawil
The liyawil is used in single combat and is the most devastating of all the munhup (waddy/club) types due to the bill hook shape, which can be turned at the moment of striking making it difficult to avoid.
It is paired with a thicker shield called a malkarr, which is made specifically to ward off munhup blows in single combat.
– Jackson Dunolly-Lee, DJAARA Aboriginal Heritage Officer
– ENDS
