Wildebeest Kuil Rock Art Centre

Wildebeest Kuil is a low hill scattered with some four hundred engraved images - eland, elephant, rhino, geometric forms - pecked into andesite boulders, the technique being engraving rather than painting, which is what the drier interior tradition mostly used. The site is significant for who owns it: the land belongs to the !Xun and Khwe communities, San groups from Angola and Namibia who were settled near Kimberley in the 1990s, and the centre is run in partnership with them. A boardwalk with an audio guide crosses the hill, and the interpretation covers both the ancient engravings and the recent history of the people who now hold the ground - two very different displacements, several thousand years apart, on one site. It is a short drive from Kimberley and takes about two hours with the film and the walk.

History

The engraving site, on land owned by the !Xun and Khwe San about 16 km from Kimberley, is a declared Provincial Heritage Site managed by the Northern Cape Rock Art Trust together with the McGregor Museum (Wikipedia, Wildebeest Kuil Rock Art Centre).

Highlights

• The engravings - about four hundred images pecked into andesite boulders.
• The community ownership - land held by !Xun and Khwe people settled here in the 1990s.
• The audio boardwalk - a guided route over the hill with commentary.
• The double history - ancient rock art and a recent displacement on the same ground.

When to go

April to September. Two hours. Summer heat in Kimberley is severe.

What to expect

Opening hours have been irregular at times - phone ahead. The engravings are subtle and need the low light of morning or late afternoon to read well. There is little shade on the hill. Do not walk on or chalk the engravings.

Nearby

Kimberley and the Big Hole are east; Barkly West is north-west.

Key facts