How old is north Queensland's rock‐art? A review of the evidence, with new AMS determinations

It has been 18 years since Andrée Rosenfeld suggested that the rock‐art of north Queensland changed from non‐figurative to mainly figurative forms some 5–4000 years ago. Her views were based on a small regional database and on indirect chronological evidence. This paper looks afresh at the antiquity of north Queensland's rock‐art by reviewing the existing evidence — much elaborated since Rosenfeld's pioneering work — and by presenting new AMS radiocarbon results undertaken directly on rock‐art. Her general chronological model is supported and refined by these new findings.