A SACRED ARTWORK in South Australia that is believed to be around 30,000 years old has been destroyed by vandals.

The Nullarbor Plain art are designs which are carved into the chalk limestone walls of the Koonalda Cave.

Vandals entered Koonalda Cave at Nullarbar Plain and scrawled graffiti reading: “Don’t look now, but this is a death cave.”

Koonalda Cave has been listed as a National Heritage site in Australia since 2014.

The site holds a special significance for the regions Aboriginal Mirning people.

Speaking to the BBC, senior Mirning elder Uncle Bunna Lawrie said that he was first informed about the “devastating” vandalism from the media.

He labelled the incident as another example of “the constant disrespect” his people had experienced.

“It’s abuse to our country and it’s abuse to our history,” he told the BBC. “What’s gone is gone and we’re never going to get it back.”

It is illegal to “damage, disturb or interfere with an Aboriginal site or object” in South Australia, with a maximum penalty of 10,000 Australian dollars (€6,317) or six months imprisonment.

But authorities have vowed to strengthen these laws following the destruction of a 46,000 year old Aboriginal site in 2020.

Juukan Gorge in Western Australia’s remote Pilbara region is one of the earliest known locations inhabited by Australia’s indigenous people.

The destruction of the site by mining company Rio Tinto, to expand an iron ore mine, prompted waves of anger and led to several high profile resignations within the company.