The proper name, as inscribed on Unescos World Heritage List, is Fossil Hominid

Sites of Sterkfontein, Swartkrans, Kromdraai and Environs, but the area is better
known as the Cradle of Humankind. It is one of eight World Heritage Sites in SA
Minaars Cave
No recent excavations
have been done, but
there is the possibility of
hominin remains of the
early Pleistocene age.
Several small carnivore
fossils have been
recovered from the site.
The site is famous for
the well-preserved fossil
cranium of a jackal
Coopers Cave
Hundreds of fossils are visible
even to the casual observer.
The site is not known for an
abundance of hominin fossils,
but rather for its extensive
record of carnivores and other
fauna between 2 million and 1
million years ago
Bolts Farm
A nearly complete skeleton of
a sabre-toothed cat, as well as
fossil elephants, pigs, antelopes
and rodents were found. Some
of the fossil rodents are about
4.5 million years old, making
this the oldest deposit in the
Cradle of Humankind
Plovers Lake
Abundant faunal
remains that have
been dated at aboutd
1 million years old
were found here. They
include baboon crania,
antelope and an
extinct zebra
Swartkrans
More than 200
hominin specimens,
mostly attributable to
Australopithecus robustus
and Homo ergaster, have been
discovered. Animal remains,
and stone and bone tools,
have also been recovered
Kromdraai
Multiple hominin specimens
were found, such as
Australopithecus robustus. It
is also a rich source of animal
fossils. Kromdraai has provided
data on several species of
sabre-toothed cats (Dinofelis,
Homotherium and Megantereon)
Sterkfontein Caves
Originally explored by lime
prospectors in the 1890s. Its
signifcance regarding fossil fnds
was not immediately understood.
Once evidence of fossil hominins
began to surface, the Sterkfontein
Caves became an exciting and
rewarding area of excavation
Wonder Cave
Bones of rodents, frogs,
lizards and birds have
been discovered in the
talus cone (cave in-fll)
at the back of the cave.
This cave is the best
example in the region of
a relatively young talus
cone (a few thousand
years old), which helps
us understand how the
older caves in the area
were flled in
Taung
Home to the Taung
Child fossil, this
site was included
in the Cradle of
Humankind despite
being 300km from
the Sterkfontein
Caves, in North West
Malapa
The remains of hundreds of
Australopithecus sediba fossil
fragments were discovered
in the early 2000s. The site
continues to produce hominin
fossils as well as the remains of
brown hyena, antelope, sabre-
toothed cat, wild dog and horse
Drimolen
The Drimolen site
has yielded 82
hominin specimens
of Australopithecus
robustus and early
Homo. The site dates to
between 2 million and
1.5 million years ago
Motsetse
Of the thousands of
fossils recovered from
Motsetse, none are
hominin. Many very fne
fossils of other animals
have, however, been
discovered, including
well-preserved Dinofelis
remains
Gladysvale
Gladysvale preserves an
extensive time sequence
dating from over 3 million
years to around 250 000
years ago. In addition to
two hominin teeth, the
site has yielded 38 000
animal fossils
Gondolin
Fossils from this site suggest
an age of between 1.9 million
and 1.5 million years. Two
molar teeth are among the
hominin fossils found. One has
been attributed to early Homo,
while the other represents
Australopithecus robustus
Makapan Valley
This site is in Limpopo, roughly
300 km from the Sterkfontein
Caves, but is classifed as
being part of the Cradle of
Humankind (as is Taung). The
site has produced animal and
hominin fossils as old as 3
million years
Haasgat
While no hominin
fossils have been found,
discoveries at this site
include forest-dwelling
monkeys, which indicate
that the deposits may be
about 1.3 million years
old
THEUNS KRUGER, Graphics24
Timeline of discoveries
1890 1900 1910 1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010
1912
The Piltdown
Man
Thought to be the
earliest Englishman is found in
Britain. It is later exposed as a hoax
earliest Englishman is found in
1938
Australopithecus
robustus
(also known as Paranthropus robustus)
Discovered by: Robert Broom and a
schoolboy, Gert
Terblanche, at
Kromdraai in the
Sterkfontein Valley
Lived: 1.9 million
years ago
Brain size: about
530 cm
3
Traits: May have
used bone tools
Australopithecus
1947
Mr(s) Ples
Robert Broom discovers Mr(s) Ples,
a well-preserved skull of
Australopithecus africanus
Lived: 2.1 million years ago
2010
Australopithecus
sediba
Discovered by:
Matthew and Lee Berger,
at Malapa, in the Cradle of Humankind
Lived: 1.8 million years ago
Brain size: Small less than 500 cm
3
Traits: An upright-walking, distant
relative of humans, with a combination
of characters of Australopithecus
and Homo (a transitional species).
Australopithecus sediba probably had
the potential to fashion stone and bone
tools
at Malapa, in the Cradle of Humankind
1925
The Taung Child
(Australopithecus africanus
Described by:
Raymond Dart
Lived: 2.5 million
years ago
Brain size: Small
about 500 cm
3
Traits: An
upright-walking
relative of all
humankind. Did
not make stone
tools
Described by:
Raymond Dart
Australopithecus africanus
Described by:
Australopithecus africanus
1891
Homo erectus
(initially called
Pithecanthropus
erectus)
Described by:
Eugene Dubois
Lived: 1.8 million
years ago
Brain size: about
1 000 cm
3
Traits: Thought
to have been the
maker of stone
hand axes
Sources: Unesco, www.maropeng.co.za, www.gauteng.net, Prof Francis Thackeray
Hartbeespoort
Atteridgeville
Muldersdrift
Diepsloot
Krugersdorp
0 10 km
Robert Broom discovers Mr(s) Ples,
Australopithecus africanus
Maropeng
The entrance to the Visitor
Centre at Maropeng, known as
the tumulus
Inside the Visitor Centre at
Maropeng there are many
activities for young and old
The rear of the Visitor Centre
is an unusual architectural
design that integrates into the
landscape
An artists interpretation of Australopithecus sediba
Hominid The group consisting of all
modern and extinct Great Apes (that
is, modern humans, chimpanzees,
gorillas and orang-utans, plus all their
immediate ancestors)
Hominin The group consisting of modern
humans, extinct human species and all our
immediate ancestors (including members
of the genera Homo, Australopithecus,
Paranthropus and Ardipithecus)
Whats the
difference between
hominid and
hominin?
Maropeng means returning to
the place of origin in Setswana,
the main indigenous language
in this area of SA. The Cradle of
Humankind World Heritage Site
is an easy drive of about an hour
from Johannesburg or Pretoria.
Our ancestors have lived in this
area for more than 3 million
years.
The Cradle of Humankind
World Heritage Site and
Dinokeng are initiatives of the
Gauteng provincial government
to establish geospatial
tourism destinations in the
northwest and the northeast
of the province, close to
Johannesburg, Tshwane and
Ekurhuleni.
The Gauteng provincial
government through Blue
IQ, its strategic economic
investment programme has
invested over R250 million in
roads and bulk infrastructure
in the two destinations to boost
tourism development.
There are 663 tourism
attractions in the two
destinations
(a remarkable
growth since 2003 when
there were only 163 tourism
establishments).
The projects promote economic
growth and social upliftment,
relieving the burden of poverty,
particularly for historically
disadvantaged communities
living in and around the two
destinations