Description (CMS Description)
Pair of feather and mud ‘kurdaitcha’ shoes. Made of emu feather, blood and mud, they have holes at the side for the dislocated little toe to be lodged. Good condition, although fragile.
Event Date
Author: maa

Context (CMS Context)
(Bio) (Collector) Fredrick John Afford Bateman was a doctor in Alice Springs periodically between 1955 -1959, where he worked both in the hospital there and as a flying medic.
Richard Bateman, the collector’s son, in correspondence with CUMAA adds: ‘The “kurdaitja” boots were given to my father by the Police District Officer in Alice Springs following their use in a ritual murder case. It is possible that they are the last genuine examples of this practice. Made of emu feather, blood and mud, they have holes at the side for the dislocated little toe to be lodged. They were made by the Aranda tribe of Alice Springs region and Northern Australia.’
Event Date
Author: maa

Context (Display)
All items associated with kurdaitcha are ceremonial items and are therefore classed as secret/sacred material, and should not be shown to Indigenous Australian women without warning them first.

This note is written on the advice of Gamilaroi researchers Amy Hammond and Marc Sutherland.
Event Date 19/4/2018
Author: Alison Clark

Context (Amendments / updates)
Noted as Aranda, one of the names for the Arrernte (Aranda/Arunta/Arrarnta) peoples of Central Australia, Northern Territory
Event Date 10/6/2020
Author: rachel hand