Interesting artifacts within South Africa’s national parks

Posted by Imogen Searra on 16 September 2020

SANParks is celebrating Heritage Month by sharing images of interesting artifacts found within national parks across the country.

Did you know that there is an Euskelosaurus skeleton within the Kruger National Park? Or that there are abandoned gold mines in the Knysna forest? Here are some other historical sites you may not have known about.

Mapungubwe National Park

Mapangubwe’s first capital, known as Schroda, was developed by the Zhizho people, ‘Who left evidence of pottery – clay figurines, Ivory objects, imported glass beads, iron and copper working as well as the pictured spear sharpening imprints and traditional gameboard,’ said SANParks.

‘The Mapungubwe cultural landscape world heritage site famous for being the first indigenous Kingdom in Southern Africa has a long history of human occupation. The San lived there in the last 5-10 thousand years. They left impressive rock art all over the landscape,’ SANParks continued.

Garden Route National Park

The Knysna Forest was once a site for gold miners who were unsuccessful in their endeavours..

SANParks said: ‘In the late 1800, long before the gold rush in the Witwatersrand gold rush, the Knysna forest saw its own scramble for gold with miners descending on the area from around the world. It turned out there was very little gold and the miners abandoned their efforts.’

Kruger National Park

The beloved Kruger National Park was once home to ancient dinosaurs, with evidence of these beasts found along the Nyalaland trail.

‘Millions of years ago dinosaurs roamed the Kruger National Park. A fossilized skeleton of 9.3 metres long and 4.4 metres tall Euskelosaurus is found along the Nyalaland trail in the park,’ said SANParks.

Image credit: Twitter/ Dept of Tourism/ @Tourism_gov_za






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