Ngarra, Larrkardi, 2005, synthetic polymer paint on paper.

Just one generation ago Australian schoolkids were taught that Aboriginal people couldn't count beyond five, wandered the desert scavenging for food, had no civilisation, couldn't navigate and peacefully acquiesced when Western Civilisation rescued them in 1788.

How did we get it so wrong?

Australian historianBill Gammageand others have shown that for many years land was carefully managed by Aboriginal people to maximise productivity. This resulted in fantastically fertile soils, now exploited and almost destroyed by intensive agriculture.

Australian Aboriginals knew more about tides than astronomer Galileo Galilei. Painting by Justus Sustermans

In some cases, Aboriginal people had sophisticatednumber systems, knew bush medicine, and navigated usingstars and oral mapsto support flourishing trade routes across the country.

They mounted fierce resistance to the British invaders, and sometimes won significant military victories such as the raids by Aboriginal warriorPemulwuy.

Only now are we starting to understand Aboriginal intellectual and scientific achievements.

TheYolngu people, in north eastern Arnhem Land in the Northern Territory,long recognisedhow the tides are linked to the phases of the moon.

Back in the early 17th century, Italian scientistGalileo Galileiwas still proclaiming, incorrectly, that the moon hadnothing to do with tides.

Read more:
Aboriginal scientific achievements recognised