Sterkfontein Caves, Johannesburg

Sterkfontein Caves, Johannesburg

Located in the Cradle of Humanity where some of the oldest hominin fossils ever have been discovered, the Sterkfontein Caves are a UNESCO World Heritage Site for shedding light on the origins and evolution of humankind, and bearing 'exceptional testimony to some of the most important Australopithecine specimens dating back more than 3.5 million years'.An hour's drive from Johannesburg, the limestone caves are one of the world's most important palaeo-anthropological sites.

Located in the Cradle of Humanity where some of the oldest hominin fossils ever have been discovered, the Sterkfontein Caves are a UNESCO World Heritage Site for shedding light on the origins and evolution of humankind, and bearing 'exceptional testimony to some of the most important Australopithecine specimens dating back more than 3.5 million years'.

An hour's drive from Johannesburg, the limestone caves are one of the world's most important palaeo-anthropological sites. The ancient cave system has a sequence of deposits with fossils dating from about 3.5 to 1.5 million years ago, which spans the early development of the family of hominids. The best known specimen are Mrs. Ples - the most complete skull of an Australopithecus africanus ever found in South Africa, and Little Foot - an almost complete Australopithecus skeleton which is more than 3 million years old. There are almost 500 other skull, jaw, teeth and skeletal fossils of early hominids, over 9000 stone tools and several animal fossils.

Visitors can learn more about the discoveries in the caves at the exhibition on the site, which includes a reconstruction of a mined cave, and details of early life forms, cave formations and geology, mammals and hominid fossils. Tours of the Sterkfontein Caves run every half hour, seven days a week.