Wits Origins Centre Museum

General information

Africa is where our ancestors evolved. It’s only fitting then that the bustling metropolis of Johannesburg, South Africa, is home to the Origins Centre.

Ceremoniously opened by former president Thabo Mbeki in 2006, the Origins Centre is a world-class museum dedicated to the exploration and celebration of 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 and complex heritage.

In addition, the Origins Centre houses an extensive collection of southern African rock art in collaboration with Wits University's Rock Art Research Institute (RARI). Visitors are thus afforded the fantastic opportunity to learn about the earliest images made by humans, and witness southern African rock art - recognized by many as comprising some of the most beautiful and complex rock art in the world.

Combining cutting-edge technology with the creative vision of some of South Africa’s foremost artists, exhibits take visitors on an extraordinary voyage of discovery, which begins with the origins of humankind in Africa, and progresses through the history, symbolism, and technology associated with the various traditions of southern African rock art.

The permanent museum exhibit begins with the oldest aspects of the human past. A favourite of this part of the journey features casts of hominid fossils discovered in South Africa and focuses on the contribution that these fossils have made to understanding the development of humankind. The exploration then continues, showing how the diverse southern African rock art traditions – the world’s oldest continuous art forms – have been treated differently at various points in history, contrasting colonial ideas with 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 exhibits that chart the origins of humankind. These include ancient stone 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 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 – or email: ask.origins@wits.ac.za

To subscribe to our mailing list and receive updates on events at the Origins Centre, email: ask.origins@wits.ac.za