Contact by the Macassans - By Marvin MA
![Picture](/uploads/3/7/2/9/37298231/6153500.jpg?248)
People always think that the Captain Cook and his fleet (British) were the first people to discover Australia. However they were not. Before the British found Australia, a trade had been happening between the Indigenous Australians and the Macassans.
The Macassans was Indonesians from a Southern Island in Indonesia, the Island is called Sulawesi. For centuries, they had a trade with China. One of the major industries includes the sea cucumbers. Here is a picture of it:
The place they got their trepang from was the place they called Marege. Which is the Northern Australia. The sea cucumbers were found in the shallow water. They came here for hundreds of years or maybe even thousands to catch sea cucumbers because it was a delicacy. They then sell it at Canton, which is in China.
They traded goods such as alcohol, clothes and etc for the rights of fishing in the Indigenous Australian’s area. The Macassan also traded metal to the Australians as knives, axes and fishing hooks for the turtle shells. The products brought new opportunities for them to live a better life. However, the things they brought also included challenges for the Indigenous Australians. Such as knives and most importantly, the most dangerous, ALCOHOL.
The Macassans was Indonesians from a Southern Island in Indonesia, the Island is called Sulawesi. For centuries, they had a trade with China. One of the major industries includes the sea cucumbers. Here is a picture of it:
The place they got their trepang from was the place they called Marege. Which is the Northern Australia. The sea cucumbers were found in the shallow water. They came here for hundreds of years or maybe even thousands to catch sea cucumbers because it was a delicacy. They then sell it at Canton, which is in China.
They traded goods such as alcohol, clothes and etc for the rights of fishing in the Indigenous Australian’s area. The Macassan also traded metal to the Australians as knives, axes and fishing hooks for the turtle shells. The products brought new opportunities for them to live a better life. However, the things they brought also included challenges for the Indigenous Australians. Such as knives and most importantly, the most dangerous, ALCOHOL.
![Picture](/uploads/3/7/2/9/37298231/155116.png?397)
This is a rock art painting the archaeologists found made by the Indigenous Australians. It shows a picture of the ships that the Macassan traveled on, called a Prau.
Every year, the Macassan came down to Australia to fish. So they know each other very well, when they had a good relationship, the Indigenous Australians helped the Macassan to cook and smoke the sea cucumbers for them. Further more, some Indigenous women had relationships with some of the men from Macassan. However, this doesn't happen all the time. Sometimes the Indigenous Australians were violent. So, every year, the Macassan came down to the same place, but shifted their bass several times to some off shore island for protection.
All in all, the Macassan had a long trade with the Indigenous Australians way before Captain Cook found Australia. No one is sure about when they actually started the trade, but the pre-contact evidence has been dated eight hundred years before the present. There were eye witnesses who saw the Macassan travelling on their Prau going home from Australia or on their way to Australia from Sulawesi.
Every year, the Macassan came down to Australia to fish. So they know each other very well, when they had a good relationship, the Indigenous Australians helped the Macassan to cook and smoke the sea cucumbers for them. Further more, some Indigenous women had relationships with some of the men from Macassan. However, this doesn't happen all the time. Sometimes the Indigenous Australians were violent. So, every year, the Macassan came down to the same place, but shifted their bass several times to some off shore island for protection.
All in all, the Macassan had a long trade with the Indigenous Australians way before Captain Cook found Australia. No one is sure about when they actually started the trade, but the pre-contact evidence has been dated eight hundred years before the present. There were eye witnesses who saw the Macassan travelling on their Prau going home from Australia or on their way to Australia from Sulawesi.