The Klerksdorp Museum & Mine Tours, Klerksdorp
The Klerksdorp Museum is a must stop for visitors to the old gold mining town in the North West Province of South Africa, and not just for those interested in history…
The Museum is housed in a sandstone prison building dating from 1891 that was built by the ZAR Department of Public Works on request of the local Klerksdorp authorities in reaction to the huge rise in crime rate after the discovery of gold in December 1885 and the gold rush that followed as of 1886. The person tasked with designing the building was Sytze Wopkes Wierda (an architect who is even today famous in architectural circles, having been involved in countless government buildings and structure)
Besides the ghosts of fortunes made and lost, there are archeological and geological exhibits, historical farming exhibits, and cultural history, period and heritage displays, but possibly the most fascinating display is that of the so called ‘Klerksdorp Spheres’.
Only 3 – 4cm in diameter, these hard spherical concretions were found in 3 billion year old soft pyrophyllite deposits mined by Wonderstone near Ottosdal, not far from Klerksdorp.
These spheres, although occurring only very rarely, are well known to geologists. Professional geologists agree that the Klerksdorp spheres originated as concretions, which formed in volcanic sediments, ash, or both, after they accumulated 3.0 billion years ago.
The museum’s contact details are +27 018 487-8900
Getting there: The museum is located in the suburb of Pienaarsdorp in Klerksdorp.
| More on the quaint town of Klerksdorp | More on the Southern District area |
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