CRADLE UNIVERSE
The Cradle of Humankind World Heritage Site
Experience the birthplace of humankind at the official visitor centres within an easy 20 minute drive from FARMHOUSE to Maropeng & Sterkfontein Caves.
Book a private guided Malapa Human Origins Tour – An enriching storytelling journey in open game drive vehicles that visits two active fossil digs; Gladysvale and Malapa.
Visit the Rising Star Caves (subject to availability), a rich palaeoanthropological site where scientists have unearthed 1,550 bones and teeth belonging to about 15 Homo Naledi individuals.
Book a guided tour at Kromdraai Gold Mine through blasted tunnels and into a history of the Witwatersrand gold rush.
Explore cycle routes of 30 to 60 k’s on the pristine roads through the Cradle. And if your timing permits, register for the monthly Full Moon Cycle from the Bidon Bistro.
Rise up to a view from the top on a sunrise flight in a hot air balloon with Air To Air Africa.
View Lion, White Rhino and Buffalo with experienced guides. Three of South Africa’s big 5, a mere 2km away from FARMHOUSE at the Bothongo Rhino & Lion Nature Reserve. And while there, nether down into the Bothongo Wonder Caves, 30 meters below the surface and the 3rd largest cave chamber in South Africa.
Run the plains on a variety of terrains at Cradle Moon and track among some 20 species of wild life. En route home visit Culinary Table , a garden-to-table restaurant or book the HARVEST experience at Ground Cafe for country style food.
The Cradle of Humankind, one of eight World Heritage Sites in South Africa, and the only one in Gauteng, is renowned as the place where humankind originated. It is here that the first hominid, Australopithecus, was found in 1924 at Taung in the North West Province by Professor Raymond Dart of the University of the Witwatersrand. And is one of the major tourist attractions in South Africa.
The Cradle of Humankind area boasts 15 excavation sites that are recognised as national heritage sites, both internationally and by the South African Heritage Resources Agency. For those wanting to experience the birthplace of humankind firsthand, the official visitor centres for the Cradle of Humankind, Maropeng and the Sterkfontein Caves, are within an easy 20minute drive from the FARMHOUSE.
A poetic landscape where art happens in nature.
Meander through life-giving arbors, waterways and fields. The park stretches extensively with contemporary artworks interspersed along the banks of the Blauwbankspruit River, intermittently hosting concerts, performances and readings.
Visit artists in residence in the NIROX studios by arrangement.
Book in advance for special visits to SA’s leading artists in the greater JBG/PTA area through NIROX’ extensive reach into the arts.
Happen upon poetry readings, talks, recitals, filming crews as you navigate the space.
Visit the Screening Room showing film of import and beauty.
Arrange a guided walkabout of the park, the current exhibition or into the vast adjoining Khatlhampi Nature Reserve – from Long-to-Long – tying together the permanent works of world-leading artist Richard Long.
Visit https://www.niroxarts.com/ to find out more
NIROX Arts Centre is a registered non-profit trust, established and run for the benefit of the arts. NIROX comprises of a sculpture park, artist residency, studios and workshops, outdoor concert venues and related function facilities.
The beauty and tranquility of the park are tributes to its sensitive design and fastidious upkeep, populated with indigenous game, moving freely in their natural habitat. The sculpture park attracts thousands of visitors annually and has hosted more than 300+ artists in residence, globally.
In the heart of the Cradle of Humankind, 58 restores conscious appreciation for life in all its manifestations. “The project is a mechanism, a catalyst, a start of something new… a different way of being.” – expressed during a Bohm Dialogue in January 2019
In the heart of the Cradle of Humankind, 58 restores conscious appreciation for life in all its manifestations. “The project is a mechanism, a catalyst, a start of something new… a different way of being.” – expressed during a Bohm Dialogue in January 2019