What is the Budj Bim Cultural Landscape?
The Budj Bim Cultural Landscape in southwest Victoria is a World Heritage site where the Gunditjmara people built one of the world's oldest aquaculture systems to trap and farm eels, dating back at least 6,600 years.
About 30,000 years ago, the volcano Budj Bim, also known as Mount Eccles, erupted and sent lava flows across the land. The Gunditjmara later reshaped these lava flows, digging channels, building weirs and creating ponds to trap and store short-finned eels.
The system allowed people to live in permanent settlements of stone houses, challenging the old idea that all Aboriginal people were nomadic. Smoked eels were traded widely.
World Heritage
In 2019, Budj Bim became the first Australian site listed on the World Heritage List solely for its Aboriginal cultural values.
The landscape includes Budj Bim National Park, Lake Condah and Tyrendarra. It is managed by the Gunditj Mirring Traditional Owners Aboriginal Corporation with government partners.
Visitors can take guided tours with Gunditjmara guides to see the channels, stone huts and eel traps. Fires in 2019 revealed previously hidden channels in the lava.
Did You Know?
The Gunditjmara describe Budj Bim as an ancestral being revealed in the landscape.