Mungo Man returned to ancestral home where he died 40,000 years ago

Traditional custodians of Lake Mungo will host today, a major ceremony to celebrate the return of the 40,000 year-old remains of Mungo Man to his Country. In 1974, more than 40 years ago, scientists found the fossilised male skeleton in Mungo National Park, New South Wales. The ancient Aboriginal man’s remains were removed to the Australian National University (ANU), Canberra, causing great upset and pain to local Aboriginal groups, the Muthi Muthi, Nygiampa and Paakantji peoples. While the remains were at the ANU, scientists were able to prove how old the ritualised burial of the man was–one of the oldest-known human burials on earth.

Isabella Higgins, ABC News, 17 November 2017 at: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-11-17/mungo-man-returned-to-ancestral-home/9159840