Bob Syron is a Registered Aboriginal Owner of Worimi Guringai lands (“through the legal process”, through the Office of The Registrar, Aboriginal Land Rights Act 1983 NSW) and Australian Rwandan war veteran 1994-95.

Bob Syron is also a passionate advocate for his Culture, and a staunch warrior known for truth-telling, and never, ever backing down.

https://hunterlivinghistories.com/2018/08/15/the-kabook-watoo/

Bob shared the following gesture he has made to the Australian Museum in Sydney, via email, and generously agreed for us to reprint it here:

I would like to donate a collection of hardwood and mangrove timber Boomerangs, Shield, hard wood Boomerangs , Nulla Nulla and more made by me Guringai on Guringai country North of the Hunter River for permanent display or exhibition called “Guringai artefacts , Guringay, Guringai Gringai country”.

I have also filmed cutting shields from mangrove tree in the swamps to the finished product using only tomahawk stone and chisel; no power tools as shown on film.

The boomerangs are 80cm from tip to tip the mangrove shield is 33 inches x 10 inches wide mangrove handle and painted with white pipe clay and red ochre. The hard wood Boomerangs are myall tree and the nulla- nulla or Bondy also Myall tree.

Yesterday at the Australian War Memorial conducted a 5-hour interview with Bob, including film crew and curators of the Australian War memorial with an official handover of  his collection of Mangrove and hard wood artefacts and shield made by him, on Guringai country north of the Hunter River NSW .

“This collection including film cutting shields in the mangrove swamps to the finished product will be on permanent display in the Australian War memorial The handover and story will be aired on national TV. They were so impressed now, possibly a documentary in following months, escorting me and filming cutting mangrove boomerangs and shields in the mangrove swamps including our story “connection to Country”.