Rio Tinto supports photographic record of Aboriginal rock art

Rio Tinto is pleased to support the publication of Burrup Rock Art - Ancient Aboriginal Rock Art of the Burrup Peninsula and Dampier Archipelago by Mike Donaldson.

The book, launched by the Western Australian Premier Colin Barnett in May 2010, is a catalogue of 600 images - the most comprehensive photographic record of petroglyphs in the Dampier Archipelago.

The author has worked closely with traditional owners and local Aboriginal corporations to enable an anthology to be sensitively produced and broadly accessible.

The book was published with funding from the Conservation Agreement signed by Rio Tinto and the Federal Government to protect and promote the values of the rock art.

Iron ore chief executive Sam Walsh said Rio Tinto had exported iron ore and salt from Dampier for several decades. 

"During this time, our awareness and appreciation of the value of local rock art, and the related stories, has grown immensely," Mr Walsh said.

"This is quite apparent in the broader community and it is here that I believe the book will play its part - to enable an appreciation of the extraordinary values present in this ancient landscape and provoke a further appetite for its preservation."