Abstract:
Reanalysis of Holocene burials from Roonka, South Australia, in collaboration with the River Murray and Mallee
Aboriginal Corporation, demonstrates that the burial of children less than 12 years involved some of the greatest
investment of time and people. While the frequency of child burials (33%, N = 216) might be read as a simple
reflection of child mortality, analysis of preservation and site formation demonstrates that the burials should not
be interpreted in this way. Rather the burial of children followed a different set of ideas that remained consistent
over 8000 years. Single primary interments of people at all ages occurred at the site, but most non-adults are
buried with an adult (74%, N = 77), predominantly male. These co-interments involve variable periods of delay
before burial of the child. I argue that at Roonka the mortuary pathway is structured around reasserting the child’s
relationships beyond the immediate family ensuring a safe afterlife journey. For children burial was at once
political, reaffirming broader relationships, and personal, signifying sentiment. Their treatment reflects the
centrality of children and their community relationships in this Aboriginal social world.