Summary

This jimbirn (head ornament) was worn around the nern (forehead). The jimbirn was regarded as belonging to men, and seldom worn by women. The jimbirn was both useful and ornamental, keeping the wearer's hair from falling in their eyes. Finely crafted head and ornament bands like this were part of the elaborate body decoration worn daily.
Additional ornamentation was often added to the jimbirn in the form of pendants on strings that were carefully incorporated into the band at the sides and back. Nerndoa jirrah (kangaroo teeth) were attached with possum-fur string and arranged to hang over each temple. From another string positioned to hang down the back of the head was a pendant made from the wreka baanda (wild dog's tail).
The jimbirn was occasionally decorated further, with the fur from the tips of koala ears, an eagle feather, a tuft of emu feathers or the crest of a cockatoo.

Local Name

Jimbirn

Physical Description

Woven forehead band made from plant fibre string obtained from the bark of a small shrub that was once plentiful around the rivers and lakes of Victoria. A loop stitch has been created, this stitch made the band very strong and enabled it to be stretched across the wearer's forehead.

Significance

Today, Koorie artists continue to make traditional decorative items such as jimbirn, necklaces, headdresses, bracelets, emu-feather skirts, possum-skin cloaks and traditional dance belts. These contemporary items compliment and illuminate the large numbers of decorative items held in museums. Koorie makers research and share the cultural knowledge skills required to produce such highly specialised and intricate items.
Lee Darroch, a Yorta Yorta/Mutti Mutti/Trawlwoolway artist explains her interest in keeping the craftsmanship, skills and traditions of her Ancestors alive;

'We carry our culture within ourselves no matter what the colour of our skin. My art links me back to my Ancestors. It is an on-going spiritual connection with land, family, totems and dreamings.'

References
Keeler, C. and Couzens, V., (eds) 2010, Meerreenng-An. This is my Country: The Story of Aboriginal Victoria Told Through Art, p. 74, Koorie Heritage Trust/BPA Print Group.

More Information