Liyawaday Wirrpanda
Boṉba
Paper Size: 54 x 44.5cm; Image Size: 38.8 x 32.3cm; Paper: Somerset

ID: 3294-24

A Dhudi-Djapu family was living at Garrangali. The man and his wife had 5 daughters, who were all beautiful. The parents went hunting one day for stingray at Bulkawuy leaving their daughters behind. Then there was the man Gurrutjurtjur lurking, he thought he would go and join with those young girls and started to make jokes with them. He wanted them to run a race to see who was the fastest. The course was set and Gurrutjurtjur set them off. The course had the girls run out then around past where Gurrutjurtjur lay in wait. The eldest of the sisters was the fastest and the one he felt keenest towards. He grabbed her as she ran past and bundled her of to his place which was over the other side from Garrangali at Garrawadwuy. Here he kept her locked up.

The remaining girls told their father on his return that their sister was taken by Nyela (Gurrutidjurr’s other name) to his camp. The father was outraged and started a ceremony to bring his daughter back – a powerful performance intoning her name and willing her to turn into a butterfly (Bonba).

So she did and was able to escape through the small cracks of her confinement and fly back like an angle, with beautiful face and wings of a butterfly to her family.