Discover Where Humankind Originated

The Cradle of Humankind is one of the major tourist attractions in South Africa. The Cradle of Humankind unveiled the partial skeletons of the Australopithecus sediba fossils recently. These fossils are suspected to be candidates for the transitional species between the southern African ape-man, Australopithecus africanus (of which “the Taung Child” and “Mrs Ples” are examples) and Homo habilis, or even a direct ancestor of Homo erectus. The two skeletons are of an adult female and a young male, recently named “Karabo”, which means “answer” in seTswana.

The Cradle of Humankind area boasts 13 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 hour’s drive from Johannesburg.