Maropeng and Cradle of Humankind award R20 000 to local school

Unity Primary School, a farm school in the Tarlton area, has taken top honours in the Cradle of Humankind Gauteng schools' treasure hunt competition.

The Cradle of Humankind World Heritage Site Project sponsored a competition open to all learners in Gauteng. The competition was aimed at promoting awareness of the educational significance of the Cradle of Humankind, as well as increasing visits to the centre.

A total of R20 000 was offered as a prize for the school with the highest number of vouchers redeemed at Maropeng during the aforementioned period. After reviewing the competition entries, Unity Primary School was announced as the outright winner.

Maropeng and Cradle staff attended the prize-giving held at the school on October 16 in order to hand over the prize money, which will be used to complete the building of new classrooms.

Sunday buffet lunch (starts Nov 2)

Maropeng will be launching regular Sunday buffet lunches at the Tumulus Restaurant starting on November 2. Come and tantalise your tastebuds with wonderful culinary surprises from a selection of mouthwatering cuisines.

Acoustic Moodz will provide entertainment as they combine the elegant sounds of guitar and marimba, setting a relaxed and unobtrusive atmosphere to laze away the afternoon.

The Sunday buffet lunches will be available every Sunday from 12h00 to 15h00 at a cost of R110 per adult. Bookings can be made with Sylvia at sylviam@maropeng.co.za or on 014 577 9012.

Wine Tasting: (Nov 8)

The art of winemaking is an age-old heritage that has been passed down through generations. The Cederberg winemaking region is renowned for its world-class and award-winning wines – each with its own unique personality – which makes it one of the best-loved and appreciated winemaking regions in the world.

Join Maropeng and Cederberg for the launch of their wine list at the Tumulus Restaurant on November 8. All the wines available on the evening will be from the Cedarberg range. The tasting costs R350 per person. This includes a four-course meal, with each course being paired with an appropriate wine by the winemaker. Guests will also be treated to a presentation by special guest Dawid Nieuwoudt, winemaker and owner of Cedarberg Wines. Indulge in an evening of class and sophistication while enjoying some of South Africa’s premier wines.

Guests wishing to stay overnight can take advantage of a special rate of R620 per person per night sharing on a bed-and-breakfast basis.

Voyage to the stars with Maropeng
(Dec 6 - Jan 11)

Aspiring astronauts and space explorers of all ages are invited to join Maropeng for an expedition to the stars. Maropeng has been granted the rights to host the StarLab, a portable inflatable planetarium providing children and young adults with an opportunity to learn more about the fascinating topic of astronomy. It is kindly on loan from the South African Agency for Science and Technology Advancement (SAASTA) from December 6 until January 11, with lift-off just in time for the school holidays.

Up to 30 children can be seated on the floor inside the inflatable dome, akin to a spherical spaceship. Once the intrepid voyagers come aboard through the igloo-shaped entrance, they are taken on a journey of discovery of galactic proportions. The StarLab is fitted with an overhead star projector, and “passengers” will feel as if the sky has opened up above them. Maropeng’s resident astronomer, Vincent Nettmann, will give a 45–minute presentation on various astronomical themes, including stars, planets, the sun, galaxies, the speed of light, the distance of stars from the Earth and the age of the universe. Vincent will also discuss the formation of the Earth and the importance of sustainable development and preservation of our Earth for future generations.

Christmas Day buffet (Dec 25)

Bookings are now open for the Christmas Day lunch at the Tumulus Restaurant and at the Maropeng Hotel. Booking is essential as space is limited.

The Maropeng Hotel is celebrating its festive season rates of R620 per person sharing (bed and breakfast). Spoil yourself and celebrate the festive season in sheer luxury this year!

Contact Sylvia on sylviam@maropeng.co.za or 014 577 9000 for all bookings, menus and further information. Booking is essential for presentations and special events as space is limited. Directions are available on www.maropeng.co.za.

Submit your images to the Maropeng
Flickr group

Maropeng has started a new group on Flickr, a popular photo-sharing website. The group is called the Cradle of Humankind and invites users to share images from the Cradle, including Maropeng and the Sterkfontein Caves.

Although it was only recently started, the group has already attracted almost 40 members and has a photo pool of over 240 images. We were so impressed with the quality and range of images submitted that we have incorporated a feed of images on to the front page of our website, which links back to the images in the Flickr group.

We invite you to submit your images to the Flickr group, or visit the group by clicking here.

New original fossil display: (Dec 6, 2008 – Feb 28, 2009)

An exciting new fossil display will open on the 6th December 2008 to reveal some controversial research. Keep a look out for the details on www.maropeng.co.za.

Read what other Maropeng visitors had to say:

"Thank you so much for the lovely time the kids and I had at Maropeng. This was truly a wonderful experience for our children.

It would be amiss if I failed to mention the sterling job undertaken by the tour guide. Taking into consideration the level at which the children were at, she patiently and competently answered all the questions my children posed."

Shanaaz Adams and all the kids from Forest Town School

"Just a quick note of thanks for your assistance with our conference last week Thursday and Friday.

It is greatly appreciated. Thank you for the care taken to ensure that absolutely everything was 100% in place. You could even deliver on weird requests, like a bottle of sherry at 14:45 with 15 glasses. You did so without any delay and delivered at 14:45 precisely!

Well done! I sent through a note of "highly recommended" to Rennies, our travel agent. Thank you and well done!!"

Ernie van Wyk – Sasol

Browse through our gallery
The new Maropeng website now has a comprehensive gallery section, covering many of the stimulating visuals in the Maropeng Visitor Centre and at Sterkfontein Caves.

Grab a glimpse of what the exhibitions offer before you experience them first hand, peek into the bedrooms of the luxurious boutique hotel, see what a memorable event a wedding at Maropeng can be …

There is so much to see at Maropeng and the online gallery delivers the highlights in an accessible way to previous, future or online visitors.

At Maropeng, we pride ourselves on our educational focus. We cater for school groups to Maropeng itself, as well as to Sterkfontein Caves, our sister site. Read about why the Cradle of Humankind is an important part of anyone’s education, no matter their age, in our Education section.

Contact Sylvia on info@maropeng.co.za or
014 577 9000 for bookings, menus and further information. Booking is essential for presentations and special events as space is limited. Directions are available on www.maropeng.co.za.