Ngatyi (Rainbow Serpent)

Overview

Badger Bates’s sculpture presents a female Ngatyi with eggs and a rainbow. In his accompanying public testimony he explains that Ngatyi created Country and the Barka, or Darling River, and remain central to Barkandji understandings of water and protection. The work is an expression of continuing Lore, with obligations to care for the river.

The English phrase Rainbow Serpent is a broad comparison across many distinct Aboriginal traditions; this entry uses the Barkandji name and Bates’s account specifically. The sculpture and testimony also connect ancestral knowledge with contemporary concerns about water management. Respecting that context means treating the work as a public cultural statement and avoiding claims to disclose everything known about Ngatyi.

Origins & earliest records

The sculpture dates to 2022 and its museum testimony to 2023. Bates identifies knowledge handed down by the Old People, making those dates documentation rather than beginnings. A surviving record dates its documentation, not the beginning of an oral tradition; earlier transmission cannot be timed precisely from this witness alone.

Records & interpretation

The public sculpture and creator’s own testimony establish the meaning he communicates about Ngatyi and cultural water. This artistic and oral evidence is distinct from biological evidence about snakes. This is evidence for cultural expression and recorded interpretation, rather than a zoological specimen or independently verified supernatural event.

Selected bibliography

Documented works and useful reading. This is not a list of every appearance.

1. 01

   Public artist testimony accompanying Save Our Ngatyi (Rainbow Serpents)

   Badger Bates (Barkandji) · 2023; sculpture 2022

   Selected relevant primary or ethnographic work; the online source below is separate.

Family & connections

A source-supported family tree or inspiration record has not yet been compiled for this profile. Related reading below indicates a connection in subject matter, not a proven lineage or creative influence.

References

Sources supporting this profile. Linked pages have their own scope and editorial standards.

1. CommunityAustralian Museum: Badger Bates speaks about Save Our NgatyiResearch access: 2026-10-05

Image credits

Ngatyi (Rainbow Serpent)

Image associated with the exact linked encyclopedia article; consult credited file description for its interpretation.