Local bird photographer Tim Bergen came across the artefact on March 25 near the mountain's summit while looking for speckled warblers to photograph.

"I wandered around a specific area near the top of the Mount looking for speckled warblers, until I stopped under a tree and saw this rock that looked like an axe," Mr Bergen said.

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"Initially, I thought 'no, it couldn't be', because extensive heritage assessments have [apparently] found nothing, but on closer inspection, it looked like the edges had been worked, so I decided to seek feedback from someone who'd know better."

Mr Bergen sought further advice from the Wiradyuri Traditional Owners Central West Aboriginal Corporation, who have since confirmed the find as a stone axe weapon, and had a site card registered with the NSW Office of Environment and Heritage as verification.

In light of the recent section 10 ruling regarding an area of McPhillamy Park put aside for a go-kart track, Mr Bergen said there's a real opportunity for the community to be further educated about the Mount's cultural significance.

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"A lot of people are saying there's no evidence of the mountain's Wiradyuri significance, but this find is physical proof, and it's not the first artefact found near the mount's summit," he said.

"It really shouldn't come down to physical proof anyway, the Wiradyuri history is widely documented, but could be lost to time if people don't take it seriously."

Mr Bergen said the cultural preservation of Mount Panorama is paramount to keeping the region's history in tact.

"There seems to be a real disconnect between First Nations and post-colonial history: it's all Australian history, and we can't throw certain aspects under the rug," he said.

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A stone axe head find was previously documented by Associate Professor Neale Draper during his 2017 visit to McPhillamy Park for a pro-bono heritage assessment.

In addition, the late anthropologist Percy Gresser recorded and collected artefacts of Wiradyuri significance in the 1920s, though their connection to Mount Panorama is disputed due to lack of information.

Well-respected bush naturalist Ian McArtney accompanied Gresser in his later life on a number of expeditions, and detailed his connection to Wahluu-Mount Panorama in a letter to the Western Advocate last October.

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