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Fig. 2 An Australian Aboriginal interpretation of the constellation of Orion, known as “Djulpan”
in Yolngu, from the Yolngu people of Northern Australia. The three stars of Orion’s belt are three
young men who went fishing in a canoe, and caught a forbidden king-fish, represented by the
Orion Nebula. Drawing by the author based on Yolngu oral and written accounts
3.3 Pleiades
The Pleiades are one of the best known features of the Aboriginal sky and its stories
have been described extensively (e.g. Andrews, 2005; Clarke, 2009; Johnson, 2011;
Norris, 2016) so only a brief description will be attempted here. In nearly all
Australian cultures, the Pleiades are female, and are often called the Seven Sisters
R. P. Norris and B. R. M. Norris
Fig. 2 An Australian Aboriginal interpretation of the constellation of Orion, known as “Djulpan”
in Yolngu, from the Yolngu people of Northern Australia. The three stars of Orion’s belt are three
young men who went fishing in a canoe, and caught a forbidden king-fish, represented by the
Orion Nebula. Drawing by the author based on Yolngu oral and written accounts
3.3 Pleiades
The Pleiades are one of the best known features of the Aboriginal sky and its stories
have been described extensively (e.g. Andrews, 2005; Clarke, 2009; Johnson, 2011;
Norris, 2016) so only a brief description will be attempted here. In nearly all
Australian cultures, the Pleiades are female, and are often called the Seven Sisters
R. P. Norris and B. R. M. Norris