Symbols and meanings
The symbols and figures on the shelter walls at Uluru are similar to those found in many sites throughout Central Australia. Anangu still use these symbols in their paintings and carvings. These include geometric symbols such as concentric circles, figures representing animal tracks and the outlines of animals.
These symbols can represent different meanings, however these become clear when the artists explain the story they are depicting. The true meanings of the Uluru rock paintings rest with the artists and those they were teaching. Some senior Anangu in the Park know the meaning of the cave symbols because they either painted them themselves or recalled having them explained by the artists.
In some paintings the concentric circles symbol may mean a waterhole, or a camping place. In others, the same symbol may indicate a honey ant nest or a native fig tree. Concentric circles symbols usually represent a significant ancestral site or can be an intricate part of the story being told by the artist.