Sydney, Nov 13: Maritime archaeologists at Flinders University have created a vivid 3D reconstruction showing what Sydney Harbour looked like thousands of years ago, when sea levels were much lower and the area was a valleyed, river-cut landscape rather than a flooded harbour.
Master’s student Jamie Li used high-resolution sonar mapping of the harbour floor and a bare-earth model of modern Sydney to digitally strip away today’s buildings and “rebuild” the ancient terrain with soil, vegetation and rivers, in collaboration with supervisor Dr John McCarthy.
“The Sydney Harbour Bridge and Opera House are recognised around the world as symbols of Australia,” says Li.
“But what fascinates me is what lies beneath them, a landscape that looked completely different tens of thousands of years ago. People don’t realise how much the harbour has transformed, and I want to change that.”
Developed in partnership with the Metropolitan Local Aboriginal Land Council, the project draws on Aboriginal oral traditions that may preserve memories of ancient sea-level rise and builds on Flinders’ internationally recognised work on submerged cultural landscapes.
“During the last Ice Age, it would have been possible to walk from what is now Circular Quay to Luna Park without catching the ferry,” says Dr McCarthy, Flinders’ Maritime Archaeology Program Coordinator.
“We are all familiar with the threat to our modern cities from rising seas caused by human-driven emissions, but not everyone is aware of these much slower underlying natural cycles of sea-level change.
“The science tells us that there are likely to be traces of all types of Aboriginal archaeological features buried under the sediments of the harbour.”
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