Divers find more than 20 stone artefacts at two submerged sites off Murujuga
Archaeologists and Murujuga rangers have documented two seabed sites off Western Australia that were drowned by rising seas at least 9,000 years ago. More than 20 stone artefacts were recovered, and the study says they could be considerably older.
The Scientist · Science desk
The new sites were submerged at least 9,000 and up to 10,000 years ago as seas rose after the last ice age. Over 2 million square kilometres of Australia's continental shelf was submerged. Vincent Adams says Ngarda-Ngarli people have cared for Murujuga for at least 50,000 years.
| Figure | Value | Note | Claim |
|---|---|---|---|
| New sites submerged as seas rose, at least | 9,000 years ago | up to 10,000 years ago | 4 |
| Shelf submerged, over | 2,000,000 sq km | 17 | |
| Ngarda-Ngarli care for Murujuga, at least | 50,000 years | per Vincent Adams | 11 |
What happened
- One site centres on a freshwater spring, and the other is associated with a rocky hill overlooking an ancient river channel.
- The study comes from Flinders, Western Australia, James Cook and York universities working with Murujuga Aboriginal Corporation rangers who trained as scientific divers.
- The paper builds on underwater research at Murujuga that began in 2019, at a site 1,250 kilometres north of Perth.
Why it matters
- What it limits constraint Until the stone itself is dated, 9,000 years is a floor set by sea level, and any claim about how much older the tools are has no number behind it.
- Who's exposed exposure The seabed sites lie off a peninsula that hosts significant industrial development, and the rangers argue the finds are a reason to protect what remains.
- What's now possible capability With ranger-divers on staff, Murujuga Aboriginal Corporation can survey its own Sea Country. Director Vincent Adams said such research strengthens its ability to protect the whole cultural landscape.
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The paper's central claim, according to the Flinders University account of the study, is that the earlier Murujuga discoveries were not isolated finds but part of a broader submerged cultural landscape [2]. The new evidence for that is two sites and more than 20 stone artefacts [4]. In our view that is enough to show that Aboriginal heritage survives on the seabed there, as the authors say [1]. It is a small sample from which to size a landscape, given that more than 2 million square kilometres of continental shelf went under after the last ice age [17]. Lead researcher Jonathan Benjamin said of Murujuga: "I think there are thousands of underwater sites there potentially." [20] The "I think" and the "potentially" are his.
Sea level supplies the 9,000-year number. The study says the sites were submerged at least 9,000 years ago and that the artifacts could be considerably older [3]. ABC puts the submersion at 9,000 to 10,000 years ago [4]. Neither account explains how the artefacts were dated or how the stone was traced to its source. Audrey Cosmos, deputy chair of Murujuga Aboriginal Corporation, pointed to "further research and scientific dating" as what the find opens up [12].
On the movement of stone, the evidence is firmer. Analysis indicates that some artifacts were made from stone sourced around Rosemary Island, about 23 kilometres from where they were found [6]. ABC reports distances of 20 to 25 kilometres [7]. The hill site was in use when the archipelago was still connected by dry land [14]. Stone found that far from its source was carried there. Benjamin read the pattern as choice: "People are selecting the raw material they prefer, and they're moving it from one upland outcrop all the way across the archipelago," he said [9].
Ranger Richard Variakojis, a co-author, described the spring site in terms of living tradition. "We did find a couple of artefacts in one area that's a submerged freshwater spring that's still sung about in the song lines to this day, even though it's been submerged for thousands of years," he said [16]. Vincent Adams, director of the corporation, said: "The Ngarda-Ngarli people have cared for Murujuga for at least 50,000 years." [11]
The peninsula is also a hub for Western Australia's oil and gas sector, with significant industrial development [18]. Ranger Malik Churnside said: "There's such amazing, beautiful natural sites surrounded by a lot of mining infrastructure, but you can go a long way to protect what is still here." [19]
What to watch
- Direct dating of the artefacts, which would replace the 9,000-year sea-level floor with an age for the stone.
- Further dives beyond the two sites, which would test Benjamin's estimate of thousands of submerged sites.
- Whether management of Murujuga's World Heritage area begins to cover seabed sites near industrial development.
Clarity's read
What the record supports and how the coverage leans. The claims behind it follow.
Reality
- Evidence68
- Adoption
- Not scored
- Hype gap+15
- Incentives40
- Confidence65
Claim ledger
Ranked by verification strength, evidence, and original report placement.
- [1]
The study, published in Quaternary Science Reviews, shows that significant Aboriginal cultural heritage survives on Australia's seabed.
- [2]
The study shows earlier discoveries at Murujuga were not isolated finds but part of a broader submerged cultural landscape across this World Heritage-listed region.
- [3]
The sites were submerged at least 9,000 years ago, but the artifacts could be considerably older.
- [4]
More than 20 stone artefacts were found across the new sites, which would have been submerged 9,000-10,000 years ago when sea levels rose after the last ice age.
- [5]
One newly documented site centres on a freshwater spring; the other is associated with a rocky hill overlooking an ancient river channel.
- [6]
Analysis indicates some artifacts were made from stone sourced from around Rosemary Island, about 23 kilometers from where they were found.
- [7]
Some of the artefacts extracted from the seabed came from as far as 20 to 25 kilometres away.
- [8]
The work is a partnership between researchers from Flinders University, The University of Western Australia, James Cook University and the University of York and Murujuga Aboriginal Corporation and its rangers, who trained as scientific divers.
- [9]
Jonathan Benjamin said: "People are selecting the raw material they prefer, and they're moving it from one upland outcrop all the way across the archipelago."
- [10]
The new paper documents two recently discovered sites off the Burrup Peninsula (Murujuga), 1,250 kilometres north of Perth, and builds on underwater research that began in 2019.
- [11]
Vincent Adams, director of Murujuga Aboriginal Corporation, said: "The Ngarda-Ngarli people have cared for Murujuga for at least 50,000 years."
- [12]
Murujuga Aboriginal Corporation deputy chair Audrey Cosmos said the find creates more opportunities, including "further research and scientific dating".
- [13]
Vincent Adams said research like this strengthens the corporation's ability to identify, understand and protect the whole Murujuga cultural landscape, including Country that was submerged when sea levels rose.
- [14]
The hill site shows how people used different parts of the landscape when the archipelago was still connected by dry land.
- [15]
Rangers Malik Churnside and Richard Variakojis are co-authors of the paper, undertook scientific diving surveys and made some of the underwater discoveries.
- [16]
Ranger Richard Variakojis said: "We did find a couple of artefacts in one area that's a submerged freshwater spring that's still sung about in the song lines to this day, even though it's been submerged for thousands of years."
- [17]
More than 2 million square kilometers of Australia's continental shelf was submerged as sea levels rose following the end of the last ice age.
- [18]
The Burrup Peninsula is a hub for Western Australia's oil and gas sector and hosts significant industrial development.
- [19]
Ranger Malik Churnside said: "There's such amazing, beautiful natural sites surrounded by a lot of mining infrastructure, but you can go a long way to protect what is still here."
- [20]
Jonathan Benjamin said: "I think there are thousands of underwater sites there potentially."
Sources
2 independent publishers whose own reporting we read for this story.
- abc.net.auNewly discovered underwater sites off WA's Burrup Peninsula give clues to ancient ways of life - ABC News
1 article · October 13, 2026
- phys.orgAustralia's oldest underwater archaeology reveals ancient life within a lost landscape
1 article · October 14, 2026
Topics and entities
Topics
- Underwater archaeology
- Indigenous cultural heritage
Entities
- Quaternary Science Reviews
- Murujuga Aboriginal Corporation
- Jonathan Benjamin
- Flinders University