Three Sisters (Australia)

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This article is about the rock formation in  New South Wales  (Australia). For the islands
in  Queensland  (Australia), see  The Three Sisters (Queensland). For other uses, see  Three Sisters
(disambiguation).

Three Sisters
Stratigraphic range: Triassic

The Three Sisters towering above the Jamison Valley.

Type Rock formation

Unit of Great Dividing Range

Lithology

Primary Sandstone

Location

Coordinates 33°44′8″S 150°18′52″E

Region Blue Mountains

Country Australia

Type section

Named for Indigenous mythology

The Three Sisters are an unusual rock formation in the Blue Mountains of New South

Wales, Australia, on the north escarpment of the Jamison Valley. They are located close to the town
of Katoomba and are one of the Blue Mountains' best known sites, towering above the Jamison
Valley.[1] Their names are Meehni (922 m), Wimlah (918 m), and Gunnedoo (906 m). [2]

Contents

 1Formation
  2Aboriginal legend

 3Giant Stairway

 4References

 5External links

Formation[edit]

A view of The Three Sisters rock formation alongside Mount Solitary. The lighter coloured
orange/yellow sections indicate fresh rock, exposed by recent erosion.

The Three Sisters at sunset

The Three Sisters were formed by land erosion around 200 million years ago during the Triassic
period when the sandstone of the Blue Mountains was eroded over time by wind, rain and rivers,
causing the cliffs surrounding the Jamison Valley to be slowly broken up.

When the Blue Mountains were covered in seawater, the ocean carried large amounts
of sediment that gradually sunk to the floor in crosswise layers. These layers later created rock beds
and shales. Around 200 million years ago, volcanoes erupted through the coal, sandstone and shale
layers, forming the ridges and the shape of the Three Sisters. [3]

Aboriginal legend[edit]

The commonly told legend of the Three Sisters is that three sisters, Meehni, Wimlah and Gunnedoo,
lived in the Jamison Valley as members of the Katoomba tribe. They fell in love with three men from
the neighbouring Nepean tribe, but marriage was forbidden by tribal law. The brothers were not
happy to accept this law and so decided to capture the three sisters. A major tribal battle ensued,
and the sisters were turned to stone by an elder to protect them, but he was killed in the fighting
and no one else could turn them back.

This legend is commonly claimed to be an Indigenous Australian Dreamtime legend.[4] However, the

legend as is commonly told may be traced back to non-indigenous schoolgirl Patricia Stone, who
gave the formations their "indigenous" names. [5][6]

The Aboriginal traditional owners, the Gundungurra, have a different legend that includes the Sisters
rock formation.[7]

Giant Stairway[edit]

From nearby Echo Point, a bushwalking trail leads to the Three Sisters and down to the valley floor
via more than 800 well-maintained steel and stone steps called "the Giant Stairway". Then a 1.5-
hour walk on The Federal Pass trail leads to the base of Katoomba Falls and the Katoomba Scenic
Railway. Walkers who don't wish to climb back to the top can take the Scenic Railway back to the
plateau for a fee.[citation needed]

References[edit]

1. ^ "Three Sisters in the Blue Mountains - Katoomba". VisitNSW.com. Archived

from  the original  on 1 December 2012. Retrieved  18 November  2012.

2. ^ "The Three Sisters". Stralia Web. Retrieved  18 November  2012.

3. ^ The Three Sisters, Blue Mountains Sightseeing Tours Australia

4. ^ Sarzin, Anne (3 November 2003).  "Myth and meaning in the Blue

Mountains".  UTS: Newsroom > U:Read it. University of Technology. Retrieved  18
July  2014.

5. ^ Burge, Michael.  "The tale of a legend".  Michael Burge Media. Retrieved  26

August  2019.

6. ^ Burge, Michael (2017).  Creating waves  : critical takes on culture and politics.

7. ^ "Gundungurra Tribal Council Aboriginal Corporation". Baddog Productions.

Retrieved  18 November  2012.

External links[edit]

Wikimedia Commons
has media related
to Three Sisters.

 Panoramic view of the Three Sisters

 Article about the making of "The Giant Stairway"