Beyond resistance and acculturation in contact archaeology : a critical review of interpretations of life at Wybalenna, Flinders Island

This thesis is an examination and reassessment of Judy Birmingham's (1992) study of Wybalenna, Flinders Island, in light of recent developments in contact archaeology. Wybalenna is the site of a settlement, operational between 1833 and 1847, to house the surviving Aborigines extradited from Tasmania. It was partially surveyed and excavated in 1969-1971 by Birmingham and her colleagues. The archaeological and historical data from the Settlement were used by Birmingham to develop an interpretation suggesting that the Aborigines showed varying degrees of acculturation and resistance in response to European domination. In my thesis, I show that these types of dichotomous interpretive frameworks are inappropriate for studying processes of cultural interaction. I also demonstrate that it is imperative to analyse historical documents critically in order to develop contextual interpretations that use both archaeological and documentary data sources to their best advantage. These topics have great applicability to contact archaeology generally.