During the 17th and 18th centuries, numerous Dutch ships were wrecked on Australian coasts. Survivors from some of these shipwrecks became stranded and were forced to live their lives in the most isolated continent in the world.

Two ships in particular have attracted my attention: the Vergulde Draeck and the Zuytdorp. A large number of survivors, including women, made it safely ashore from both ships. As a result, early English explorers recorded examples of Aboriginal people with European features or had come across tribes who recounted stories of a ‘white’ tribe.

One such encounter was recorded by explorer A