Professor Jon Altman describes transformations in the customary economy of Aboriginal people in western Arnhem Land over 60 years – a comparative analysis made possible because of research undertaken by Frederick McCarthy and Margaret McArthur in 1948.

Daryl Guse discusses archaeological research in north-western Arnhem Land that indicates early Indigenous participation in and trade with the Indonesian trepang maritime industry, and the adaptability of Indigenous coastal communities.

Historian Adele Wessell uses cookbooks to draw conclusions about Australian political and social life at the turn of the century, examining British diet and food preferences that were maintained and transformed in colonial Australia.

Alison Wishart examines the challenges of displaying rare cookery books in museums. She focuses on Flora Pell’s Our Cookery Book, published in 1916, and suggests display methods to allow better visitor interaction.

Historian Adele discusses cookbooks as historial resources, drawing on the National Museum’s collection in her time as a Visiting Fellow with the Museum’s Centre for Historical Research.