| Abstract: |
Interpretations of Australian prehistory have generally emphasized the foreign origin of many aspects of Aboriginal culture, as of Aborigines themselves. While excavations from 1790 onward showed that economic and technological changes occurred in Australian prehistory, full appreciation of the import of these changes is recent. Since the 1960s, the development of anthropologically oriented archeology has led to the discovery of a prehistoric record dating back into late Pleistocene times. We review evidence that defines more precisely the antiquity and probable mode of arrival of the first Australians and shows that their impact on the local fauna and the evolution of their economy and technology possess distinctive characteristics.
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