Muluymuluy Wirrpanda Yolngu, b. 1959
41 3/8 x 12 5/8 in
In the artist's words: 'Yukuwa (yam) is ŋatha (food) that grows in wet season time. After the wet season when the leaves fall down, at that time we always go into the grass to get some yams. When we go we can see the vine string part of the plant in the trees. We follow the string to dig a hole to get the Yukuwa. After that we go down to the beach to make a fire. When the fire burns down we take the coals to one side and put sand on top of them. Then the hot sand cooks the Yukuwa.' Below is the Yolŋu dictionary entry for this plant. Meaning: rootfood--vine (small scrambling plant) with long edible root Vigna vexillata, V. lanceolata. A synonym of yukuwa(') is: bunbun', dhirmbuk, gulparuŋ'