After more than 150 years away from Country, a canoe from Mamu community is beginning the journey of reconnection.
At 153 years old, the canoe is a remarkable survivor and is recognised on the Australian Register of Historic Vessels. Removed from Country in 1873 and held in the Queensland Museum collection, the canoe is now reunited with Community, waterways and the stories to which it belongs.
But for brothers, Pastor Manni Edwards and Nathanael Edwards, descendants of its Traditional Owners, seeing the canoe was about far more than its age or condition.
It’s about connection. It’s about Ancestors. And it’s about the resilience of the Bagirbarra community to which it belongs.
‘It’s truly, truly pride’
For Nathanael, the first encounter with the canoe was difficult to describe.
Standing in front of a vessel created by his ancestors more than a century and a half ago, he was struck by its presence and the weight of what he was seeing.
“I felt like I was having an experience as I was walking in Rome”, Nathanael said.
“I felt like I was in China looking at the clay army. It had a profound impact.”
The canoe is one of the most compelling objects Nathanael has encountered – not simply because of its age, but because of what it represents.
“Just proud with our culture”, he stated.
For Nathanael, the canoe speaks to the strength and resilience of the people who created it and their deep relationship with Country.
“There’s no other words to describe the tenacity, the strength and the connection our mob had with Country.”
A connection to Ancestors
For Pastor Manni Edwards, the experience was deeply emotional.
Seeing and touching the canoe created a connection to Ancestors that felt immediate and tangible.
“I’m just trying to take it all in,” Pastor Manni said.
The significance of being able to physically connect with something made by his Ancestors was profound.
“Something that I’ve never experienced before,” he said. “It was really touching to be able to hold something that I know that my Ancestors had created and made and sweat and blood and tears over it.”
“It’s days like this that allows us to reconnect with our Ancestors in a different way.”
More than a canoe
Canoes are more than vessels for travelling across waterways. They are part of the cultural knowledge, stories and journeys of the people who made and used them.
During the encounter, Pastor Manni shared a journey song traditionally associated with travelling through Country.
“Before we go hunting or everyone’s moving through the land and [we sing] that little song …”
The song is a reminder that the canoe sits within a much larger cultural story – one connected to Country, movement, song, knowledge and community.
“These vessels, these canoes, are part of that journey,” Nathanael said.
And now, the canoe is beginning another journey.
For Pastor Manni and Nathanael, this is an opportunity to reconnect with something that has been separated from its Community for generations.
The canoe has survived for approximately 153 years holding within its form the knowledge and craftsmanship of the people who made it.
Now it has another story to tell.
A story of reconnection.
A story of culture and resilience.
A story of Ancestors and Country.
The Mamu canoe is being cared for by Queensland Museum, on behalf of the Mamu community, and is on display in Queensland Museum Kurilpa’s Ngurbay / To go home exhibit, in the Stories of Country Gallery, museum.qld.gov.au/stories-of-country
Watch the journey of reconnection for the Bagirbarra people:
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