Jinmium

Most people think of Australia as a new country, now there is growing evidence that it is one of the very oldest sites of human civilisation. In September 1996, claims that Aborigines had been living at Jinmium, in north western Australia 116,000 years ago made international headlines. The announcement was greeted with amazement, then disbelief partly because this is double the accepted age of the earliest occupation of Australia. If the controversial dates are correct, there are major implications for understanding how humans first reached the continent. Over two half hours QUANTUM looks at how the development of dating techniques over the past century has provided new perspectives on the Aborigines' link with the landscape.