Matsieng Footprints

At Matsieng a flat sheet of sandstone around two natural waterholes carries engraved human footprints and animal tracks, cut into the rock at an unknown date. In the tradition attached to the site, the first people and their animals emerged from the holes onto the rock and left these prints as they came out; Matsieng is the name of the figure who led them. The site is a national monument with a small interpretation centre, and it is one of very few accessible rock engraving sites in the southeast.

What you actually see

• The engraved prints - human footprints and animal tracks cut into the sandstone.
• The waterholes - two natural shafts in the rock at the centre of the tradition.
• The rock sheet - the flat sandstone surface the engravings are spread across.
• The interpretation centre - a small display explaining the site and the tradition.

When to go

April to September is the most comfortable. Low morning or evening light makes the engravings much easier to see. Midday sun flattens them almost completely.

Honest expectations

The engravings are worn and hard to make out in flat light; many visitors miss most of them. The site is small and takes half an hour. Opening hours at the centre are unreliable.

Nearby

Mochudi is northeast, and Gaborone is south.