In Mabo v Queensland (No 2) (1992), Meriam plaintiffs claimed that they had “continuously inhabited and exclusively possessed” the Murray Islands since “time immemorial”. These claims were subsequently supported by the findings of Justice Moynihan and became an evidentiary basis for the Australian High Court’s first recognition of surviving native title. Yet the deeper archaeological history of this community and the antiquity of cultural practices central to these claims, remains poorly understood. 

This paper, authored by Duncan Wright and Alo Tapim, presents the results of a collaborative archaeological project completed with Meriam Dauareb Elders, focusing on the material dimensions of spiritual and ceremonial life on Dauar and Waier islands. We report the first osteoarchaeological investigation conducted in Torres Strait, centred on a 1,000-year-old burial ground, alongside survey and excavation of ritual shrine complexes associated with garden-increase ceremonies. Together, these investigations provide new archaeological evidence for the long-term development of Meriam ritual practices and their relationship with neighbouring Papua New Guinea and mainland Australia, while also revealing distinctive forms of Meriam cultural practice. The findings illuminate a period associated elsewhere in the region with the displacement of coastal communities and intensified head-hunting, while also revealing evidence for increased ancestor veneration and ceremonial activity. By placing archaeological evidence alongside Meriam oral histories, these results provide new insights into the enduring cultural traditions of a community central to Australia's reconciliation journey.

Duncan Wright is an Associate Professor in the School of Archaeology and Anthropology at the Australian National University (ANU). His research focuses on archaeology conducted in partnership with First Nations communities, with an emphasis on generating cultural and economic benefits through archaeological research. Since beginning his archaeological training in Wales in 1998, he has worked across Australia, Papua New Guinea, Palau, Torres Strait, and Europe. His current research focuses on Torres Strait, including an upcoming ARC-funded project investigating the history of the Dauareb clan through its agricultural, aquacultural, and spiritual connections to place.