The Cradle ( From the N14 or the N1, follow the R512 north.Rhino & Lion Nature Reserve (including the Wonder Caves), ☏ +27 11 957-0109, fax: +27 11 957-0019, A nature reserve within the Cradle.Įat The viewing deck of the Tumulus at Maropeng Centre.Visitors centre: R80 for adults, R45 for children, R60 for pensioners. Within the centre, the Tumulus Restaurant is located on the first floor and the Tumulus bar is located on the second floor. At the entrance there is an ATM, coffee shop and souvenir shop.

The short underground boat ride is a must do activity. Mostly aimed at students, but fascinating for anyone interested in human origins. The Cradle of Mankind exhibition and education centre. Hendrik Potgieter will become the N14, follow directions as above.), ☏ +27 14 577-9000, 9AM to 5PM.

From the N1 in Johannesburg take exit 80 Roodepoort (M8 14th Ave) and get onto Hendrik Potgieter road (M47) heading north. From Tshwane, follow the N14 west until it reaches the R563, then follow the directions as above. Maropeng, On the D400 ( From Krugersdorp, follow the R563 north to the R400, turn left into the R400, Maropeng will be on your left about 1.7km further.The tunnel of time at Maropeng, timeline from the present into the past depicted on the floor and walls.

R80 for adults, R50 for children between 4 to 14 years old, R60 for pensioners, children under age of 4 for free. You can also visit the museum to learn more about the evolution of man. A tour guide will lead you through this extensive cave system where many early hominids and advanced ape fossils were discovered. Get around See Do Sterkfontein Caves (Cradle of Humankind) Hendrik Potgieter will become the N14 and lead directly into the Cradle of Humankind. The site covers an area of around 47 000 hectares and offers a variety of tourist attractions.įrom the N1 in Johannesburg, take exit 80 Roodepoort (M8 14th Ave) and get onto Hendrik Potgieter road (M47) heading north. 13 well explored fossil sites and over 200 caves are located within the cradle. Located just northwest of Johannesburg this area became a UNESCO World Heritage Site due to the large number of humanoid fossils that has been found here. The hominin fossil finds, together with the rich record of other animal animal and plant fossils, provide us with a window into the past into a time when our earliest ancestors were evolving and changing, proving that the African continent is undoubtedly the beginnings of humankind.Cradle of Humankind is an UNESCO World Heritage Site in South Africa. The sites occur mostly in association with dolomitic caves that have produced and continue to produce an abundance of scientific information on human evolution from the past 3.5 million years. One of the earliest evidence of the controlled use of fire has also been found at Swartkrans, indicating an important shift in human evolution. This wealth of significant hominid fossils that have been unearthed here include Mrs Ples ( Australopithecus africanus), Little Foot ( Australopithecus prometheus), Karabo ( Australopithecus sediba) and, more recently, Homo naledi. Located in the Muldersdrift area, about 40km northwest of Johannesburg these palaeo-anthropological sites have some of the richest concentrations of fossil hominid bearing sites in the world. Known as The Cradle of Humankind, this collection of 15 (originally 12) declared National Heritage Sites, together with the Makapan Valley site in Limpopo Province and the Taung Child site in North West Province, constitute the serially-listed sites inscribed by UNESCO as the Fossil Hominid Sites of South Africa. Inscription as a World Heritage Site: 1999 Declaration of the original 12 National Heritage Sites: 5 November 2004

Cradle of humankind