Aboriginal Art Sale from the Central Australian Desert  View more

Bush Tomato

This Icon Belongs To The Japangardi/napangardi And Japanangka/napanangka Skin Groups/

As Described By Janet Long Nakamarra

The Circles In The Center Represents The Roots And The Shapes Around Them Are The Tomatoes. The Oval Shapes To The Side Are The Kajalarra.

People Would Go Out And Pick Tomatoes And Bring Them Home. They Would Then Get A Emu Bone, ‘Kajalarra’ And Make It Look Like A Spoon. They Would Then Clean Away The Seeds Of The Tomatoes. Once The Seeds Are Cleaned Then They Would Get A Twig Of A Branch And Skew The Tomatoes Like Kebabs. This Was When The People Used To Travel Around Or When They Were Hunting They Would Take The Skewed Tomatoes In Their Coolamons And Eat Them The Next Day.

The Tomatoes Can Also Cooked In The Colas, Taste Very Juicy. When You Clean The Seeds You Have To Be Very Careful Because Once You Have The Seed In Your Eye A Lot Of Pain And Makes Your Eye Watery With Tears And Very Red And Also Makes You Feel Drowsy.