Blue-tongue Lizard
Dreamtime Story

The Blue-tongue Lizard Dreamtime story is about the lizard called Kurrih and the dillybag called Bulbbe

As told and painted by Leslie Nawirridj
Gunbalanya (Oenpelli)
Western Arnhem Land, NT

One day, in this dreamtime story, there was a man making a dillybag, called bulbbe. The bulbbe was for carrying food when he went for his bush tucker. While he was making it, he saw a group of men coming. They were his enemies. They were going to spear him and kill him. He was scared, so he formed himself into a blue-tongue lizard, called kurrih. He crawled inside the bulbbe to hide from his enemies.

Now that bulbbe was made out of string from the kurrajong tree. The string was really hard and tightly woven. It stuck on his back while he was inside the bulbbe. That’s why the skin on the kurrih is so hard that other animals, like the king brown snake, can’t bite him. His skin is strong and hard like a tightly twined bulbbe.

Compiled by Alison Nawirridj

Blue-tongued Lizard
Print is on A4 or A3 Canvas

Blue-tongued Lizard
Print is on A4 or A3 Canvas

Blue-tongued Lizard Story

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