Isobel Major Nampitjinpa

In this painting Isobel has depicted the country around Mt Denison which also belongs to her Grandfather Billy Stockman Tjapaltjarri. The central area represents the creek running through Mt Denison country while the black circles represent ‘sugarbags’ in the surrounding country. Sugarbag (wild honey) or Ngalypuru is the syrup made by the native bees, described as a small stingless honey bee. These insects live up in the trees and the Anangu (Aboriginal people) eat the honey. The honey is found in the tree hollows. To find the honey, the Anangu look for the native bees buzzing around the trees and the wax protruding from the trunks. The tree is then chopped and split to reveal the honey. The honey and the bees’ larvae are all collected in a coolamon or wooden bowl to be eaten.