The archaeological significance of the Lower Cooper Creek

A systematic survey of the Lower Cooper Creek has revealed an exceptionally rich record of prehistoric occupation, trade and subsistence strategies. Preliminary analysis of Holocene assemblages suggests significant differences in settlement/subsistence strategies between the floodplain unit and the dunefields proper, to the west. The location and dating of two hearths incorporated within dune cores clearly establishes a human presence in the central Lake Eyre Basin during the late Pleistocene.