About

Africa is where our ancestors evolved into human beings; it’s only fitting then that the bustling metropolis of Johannesburg, South Africa, is where the Origins Centre has been established.

Opened by President Thabo Mbeki in 2006, the Origins Centre is a world-class museum dedicated to exploring and celebrating the history of modern humankind, telling the story of the emergence of human beings and humanity in southern Africa.

Conceptualised by a team of academics and designers from Wits University, the museum aims to provide visitors with a unique experience of Africa’s rich, complex heritage.

The Origins Centre boasts an extensive collection of rock art from the Wits Rock Art Research Institute (RARI), affording visitors the opportunity to view the earliest images made by humans, found in South Africa.

Combining cutting-edge technology with the creative vision of some of South Africa’s foremost artists, the museum’s exhibits take visitors on an extraordinary voyage of discovery, which begins with the origins of humankind in Africa, and then moves through the development of art, symbolism, and technology on the continent.

An early display in the museum’s journey focuses on the fossils discovered in South Africa and the contribution these fossils have made to understanding the development of humankind. The exploration then continues, showing the destruction of the diverse southern African rock art traditions – the world’s oldest continuous art forms – at the hands of colonialists, before ending, more positively, with the re-discovery of these ancient masterworks in a contemporary world.

The Origins Centre seeks to restore the African continent to its rightful place in history – at the very beginning of mankind’s journey to humanity.

The Origins Centre is also home to a vast array of palaeoanthropological, archaeological and genetic materials charting the origins of humankind. These include ancient tools, artefacts of spiritual significance to early humans and examples of the region’s striking rock art.

Visitors to the Origins Centre can expect to take follow an 80 000-year path in search of the art and culture that has inspired human innovation, as well as delve into the fascinating beliefs of the ancient San, experiencing ritual such as hunting and the trance dance.

The average museum experience takes between 90 minutes and two hours, but for the enthusiast, there is an unsurpassed wealth of additional multi-media material detailing Africa’s past.

Audio guides come with the price of admission and are available in six languages – Zulu, Sotho, English, Afrikaans, French and German.

To book your tour of the centre contact our front desk on +27 (0)11 717 4700.

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