Editing Bunyip (section)

== Early accounts of European settlers ==
[[File:Story of the bunyip 1882.jpg|thumb|right|An 1882 illustration of an Aboriginal man telling the story of the bunyip to two [[White people|white]] children]]

During the early settlement of Australia by Europeans, the notion became commonly held that the bunyip was an unknown animal that awaited discovery. Unfamiliar with the sights and sounds of the island continent's peculiar fauna, early Europeans believed that the bunyip described to them was one more strange Australian animal and they sometimes attributed unfamiliar animal calls or cries to it. Scholars suggest also that 19th-century bunyip lore was reinforced by imported European folklore, such as that of the Irish [[Púca]].<ref name = Oxford/>

A large number of bunyip sightings occurred during the 1840s and 1850s, particularly in the southeastern colonies of [[Colony of Victoria|Victoria]], [[Colony of New South Wales|New South Wales]] and [[Colony of South Australia|South Australia]], as European settlers extended their reach. The following is not an exhaustive list of accounts:

=== First written use of the word ''bunyip'', 1845 ===
In July 1845, ''The [[Geelong Advertiser]]'' announced the discovery of fossils found near [[Geelong]], under the headline "Wonderful Discovery of a new Animal".<ref name = "firstuse">{{cite news |url = http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article94443733 |title = Wonderful Discovery of a New Animal |newspaper = Geelong Advertiser and Squatters' Advocate |location = [[Geelong]], Australia |date = 2 July 1845 |access-date = 16 September 2013 |volume = 5 |issue = 326 |page = 2 |via = [[National Library of Australia]] |archive-date = 26 April 2020 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200426084036/https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/94443733 |url-status = live }}</ref> This was a continuation of a story on 'fossil remains' from the previous issue.<ref>{{cite news |url = http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article91122742 |title = Fossil Remains |newspaper = Geelong Advertiser and Squatters' Advocate |location = [[Geelong]], Australia |date = 28 June 1845 |access-date = 16 September 2013 |volume = 5 |issue = 325 |page = 2 |via = [[National Library of Australia]] |archive-date = 23 April 2020 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200423204520/https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/91122742 |url-status = live }}</ref> The newspaper continued, "On the bone being shown to an intelligent black, he at once recognised it as belonging to the bunyip, which he declared he had seen.<ref name = "firstuse"/> On being requested to make a drawing of it, he did so without hesitation." The account noted a story of an Aboriginal woman being killed by a bunyip and the "most direct evidence of all" – that of a man named Mumbowran "who showed several deep wounds on his breast made by the claws of the animal".<ref name = "firstuse"/>

The account provided this description of the creature:

{{Blockquote|The Bunyip, then, is represented as uniting the characteristics of a bird and of an alligator. It has a head resembling an emu, with a long bill, at the extremity of which is a transverse projection on each side, with serrated edges like the bone of the stingray. Its body and legs partake of the nature of the alligator. The hind legs are remarkably thick and strong, and the fore legs are much longer, but still of great strength. The extremities are furnished with long claws, but the blacks say its usual method of killing its prey is by hugging it to death. When in the water it swims like a frog, and when on shore it walks on its hind legs with its head erect, in which position it measures twelve or thirteen feet in height.<ref>''The Geelong Advertiser'' 2 July 1845 in Peter Ravenscroft, ''Bunyip and Inland Seal Archive''[https://archive.today/20130511031804/http://pool.abc.net.au/media/bunyip-and-inland-seal-archive-australia]</ref>}}

Shortly after this account appeared, it was repeated in other Australian newspapers.<ref>{{cite news |date=12 July 1845 |title=Wonderful Discovery of a New Animal |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/26145464/wonderful_discovery_of_a_new_animal/ |newspaper=The Sydney Morning Herald |location=Sydney, Australia |volume=20 |issue=2547 |page=2 |via=[[Newspapers.com]] |access-date=11 December 2018 |archive-date=15 December 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181215222552/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/26145464/wonderful_discovery_of_a_new_animal/ |url-status=live }}</ref> This appears to be the first use of the word ''bunyip'' in a written publication.

=== Australian Museum's bunyip of 1847 ===
[[File:Bunyip skull.jpg|thumb|The purported bunyip skull]]

In January 1846, a peculiar skull was taken by a settler from the banks of [[Murrumbidgee River]] near [[Balranald, New South Wales|Balranald]], New South Wales. Initial reports suggested that it was the skull of something unknown to science.<ref>{{cite news |url = http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article94445051 |title = PUBLIC THOROUGHFARES. |newspaper = Geelong Advertiser and Squatters' Advocate |date = 12 January 1847 |access-date = 16 September 2013 |page = 2 Edition: EVENING |publisher = National Library of Australia |archive-date = 23 April 2020 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200423204520/https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/94445051 |url-status = live }}</ref> The squatter who found it remarked, "all the natives to whom it was shown called [it] a bunyip".<ref>Cited in {{harvnb|Holden|2001|p = 91}}</ref> By July 1847, several experts, including W. S. Macleay and Professor Owen, had identified the skull as the deformed foetal skull of a foal or calf.{{sfn|Holden|2001|pp = 92–93}} At the same time, the purported bunyip skull was put on display in the [[Australian Museum]] (Sydney) for two days. Visitors flocked to see it, and ''[[The Sydney Morning Herald]]'' reported that many people spoke out about their "bunyip sightings".<ref>[http://www.nla.gov.au/exhibitions/bunyips/html-site/evidence/skull.html] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060228120153/http://www.nla.gov.au/exhibitions/bunyips/html-site/evidence/skull.html|date=28 February 2006}} National library of Australia. Bunyips – Evidence</ref> Reports of this discovery used the phrase 'Kine Pratie' as well as Bunyip.<ref>{{cite news |url = http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article31750864 |title = THE BUNYIP, OR KINE PRATIE. |newspaper = [[Sydney Chronicle]] |date = 23 January 1847 |access-date = 16 September 2013 |page = 2 |publisher = National Library of Australia |archive-date = 23 April 2020 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200423204519/http://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/31750864 |url-status = live }}</ref> Explorer [[William Hovell]], who examined the skull, also called it a 'katen-pai'.<ref>{{cite news |url = http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article12897214 |title = ORIGINAL CORRESPONDENCE. |newspaper = [[The Sydney Morning Herald]] |date = 9 February 1847 |access-date = 16 September 2013 |page = 3 |publisher = National Library of Australia |archive-date = 23 April 2020 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200423204520/https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/12897214 |url-status = live }}</ref>

In March of that year, "a bunyip or an immense Platibus" ([[Platypus]]) was sighted "sunning himself on the placid bosom of the Yarra, just opposite the Custom House" in [[Melbourne]]. "Immediately a crowd gathered" and three men set off by boat "to secure the stranger" which "disappeared" when they were "about a yard from him".<ref>{{cite news |url = http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article71607452 |title = PORT PHILLIP. |newspaper = [[The South Australian]] |location = Adelaide |date = 2 March 1847 |access-date = 16 September 2013 |page = 7 |publisher = National Library of Australia |archive-date = 23 April 2020 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200423204520/https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/71607452 |url-status = live }}</ref>

=== William Buckley's account of bunyips, 1852 ===
Another early written account is attributed to escaped convict [[William Buckley (convict)|William Buckley]] in his 1852 biography of thirty years living with the [[Wathaurong]] people. His 1852 account records "in&nbsp;... Lake Moodewarri [now Lake Modewarre] as well as in most of the others inland&nbsp;... is a&nbsp;... very extraordinary amphibious animal, which the natives call Bunyip." Buckley's account suggests he saw such a creature on several occasions. He adds, "I could never see any part, except the back, which appeared to be covered with feathers of a dusky grey colour. It seemed to be about the size of a full grown calf&nbsp;... I could never learn from any of the natives that they had seen either the head or tail."<ref>Tim Flannery (Ed.) (2002): ''The life and adventures of William Buckley: thirty-two years a wanderer amongst the Aborigines of the unexplored country round Port Phillip'' by John Morgan and William Buckley (first published 1852); this edition: Text Publishing, Melbourne Australia, p. 66. {{ISBN|1-877008-20-6}}</ref> Buckley also claimed the creature was common in the [[Barwon River (Victoria)|Barwon River]] and cites an example he heard of an Aboriginal woman being killed by one. He emphasized the bunyip was believed to have supernatural powers.<ref>Tim Flannery (Ed.) (2002), ''The life and adventures of William Buckley'', pp. 138–9.</ref>

=== Stocqueler's sightings and drawings, 1857 ===
In an article titled, 'The Bunyip', a newspaper reported on the drawings made by [[Edwin Roper Loftus Stocqueler|Edwin Stocqueler]] as he travelled on the Murray and Goulburn rivers: 'Amongst the latter drawings we noticed a likeness of the Bunyip, or rather a view of the neck and shoulders of the animal. Mr. Stocqueler informs us that the Bunyip is a large freshwater seal, having two small padules or fins attached to the shoulders, a long swan like neck, a head like a dog, and a curious bag hanging under the jaw, resembling the pouch of the pelican. The animal is covered with hair, like the platypus, and the colour is a glossy black. Mr. Stocqueler saw no less than six of these curious animals at different times; his boat was within thirty feet of one near M'Guire's punt on the Goulburn, and he fired at the Bunyip, but did not succeed in capturing him. The smallest appeared to be about five feet in length, and the largest exceeded fifteen feet. The head of the largest was the size of a bullock's head, and three feet out of water. After taking a sketch of the animal, Mr. Stocqueler showed it to several blacks of the Goulburn tribe, who declared that the picture was "Bunyip's brother," meaning a duplicate or likeness of the bunyip. The animals moved against the current, at the rate of about seven miles an hour, and Mr. Stockqueler states that he could have approached close to the specimens he observed, had he not been deterred by the stories of the natives concerning the power and fury of the bunyip, and by the fact that his gun had only a single barrel, and his boat was of a very frail description.'<ref>{{cite news |url=https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/64568063 |title=The Bunyip |newspaper=Portland Guardian and Normanby General Advertiser |date=23 March 1857 |via=Trove (National Library of Australia) |access-date=3 November 2018 |archive-date=3 November 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181103092125/https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/64568063 |url-status=live }}</ref>

The description varied across newspaper accounts: 'The great Bunyip question seems likely to be brought to a close, as a Mr. Stocqueler, an artist and gentleman, who has come up the Murray in a small boat, states that he saw one, and was enabled to take a drawing of this "vexed question," but could not succeed in catching him. We have seen the sketch, and it puts us in mind of an hybrid between the water mole and the great sea serpent.'<ref>{{cite news |url=https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/189958682 |title=Southern Districts: Albury |newspaper=The Armidale Express |via=Trove (National Library of Australia) |access-date=3 November 2018 |archive-date=3 November 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181103092045/https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/189958682 |url-status=live }}</ref> 'Mr. Stocqueler, an artist, and his mother are on an expedition down the Murray, for the purpose of making some faithful sketches of the views on this fine stream, as well as of the creatures frequenting it. I have seen some of their productions, and as they pourtray localities with which I am well acquainted, can pronounce the drawings faithful representations. Mother and son go down the stream in a canoe. The lady paints flowers, &c.; the son devotes himself to choice views on the river's side. One of the drawings represents a singular creature, which the artist is unable to classify. It has the appearance in miniature of the famous sea-serpent, as that animal is described by navigators. Mr. Stocqueler was about twenty-five yards distant from it at first sight as it lay placidly on the water. On being observed, the stranger set-off, working his paddles briskly, and rapidly disappeared. Captain Cadell has tried to solve the mystery, but is not yet satisfied as to what the animal really is. Mr. Stocqueler states that there were about two feet of it above water when he first saw it, and he estimated its length at from five to six feet. The worthy Captain says, that unless the creature is the "Musk Drake" (so called from giving off a very strong odour of musk), he cannot account for the novelty.'<ref>{{Cite news| url=https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/64982354| title=South Australia| pages=2| newspaper=Empire (Sydney, NSW)| date=2 January 1857| via=Trove (National Library of Australia)| access-date=3 November 2018| archive-date=3 November 2018| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181103131327/https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/64982354| url-status=live}}</ref>

Stocqueler disputed the newspaper descriptions in a letter; stating that he never called the animal a bunyip, it did not have a swan like neck, and he never said anything about the size of the animal as he never saw the whole body.<ref>{{Cite news|author=Edwin Stocqueler|orig-year=Sandhurst, 1 July 1857|url=https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/88000162?searchTerm=stocqueler%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20&searchLimits=exactPhrase|date=3 July 1857|title=Original Correspondence. The Bunyip|page=3|newspaper=Bendigo Advertiser (Vic.)|via=Trove (National Library of Australia)|access-date=4 November 2018|archive-date=5 November 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181105063513/https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/88000162?searchTerm=stocqueler%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20&searchLimits=exactPhrase|url-status=live}}</ref> He went on to write that all would be revealed in his diorama as an 'almost life size portrait of the beast' would be included. The diorama took him four years to paint and was reputed to be a mile (1.6&nbsp;km) long and made of 70 individual pictures. The diorama has long since disappeared and may no longer exist.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.sbs.com.au/gold/story.php?storyid=97|title=Edwin Roper Loftus Stocqueler|first=Karen|last=Quinlan|year=2001|website=Gold!|access-date=4 November 2018|archive-date=5 November 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181105061919/https://www.sbs.com.au/gold/story.php?storyid=97|url-status=live}}</ref>