Rethinking regional analyses of western Pacific rock-art. In A Pacific Odyssey: Archaeology and Anthropology in the Western Pacific. Papers in Honour of Jim Specht

Abstract

Jim Specht has played a central role in the identification of two discrete bodies of rock-art in the western Pacific region, referred to in this paper as the "Austronesian engraving style" (AES) and the "Austronesian painting tradition" (APT). The aim of this paper is to explore the merits of the AES and the APT as analytical entities by determining how they articulate with one another across the region. This is achieved by conducting statistical analyses of western Pacific rock-art motifs. The results of these analyses are then compared with models founded on consideration of non-motif variables by previous authors, including Jim Specht.