The East London Museum houses one of South Africa’s most delightful collections of historical artifacts, amazing discoveries and utter eccentricities, and is home to excellent anthropological displays, including a stuffed coelacanth, a fish believed to have been extinct until one was netted locally in 1938, and a hominin child’s footprints estimated to be 124 000 years old.

There are few places in Africa where, in the space of a short walk from room to room, you can find a 40 000-year-old skull, human footprints made 120 000 years ago and Venetian trade beads found all over this continent.

Reptile skulls from the ancient Karoo vie with the life histories of early African intellectuals like Mpilo Walter, Tiyo Soga and John Jabavu, while old photographs of East London and bucolic Xhosa cultural collections stand nearby.

HOW TO GET HERE

The East London Museum is situated at 319 Oxford Street (entrance from Dawson Road) Southernwood East London. There is ample public parking accessible from Dawson Road.

Directions

From Airport: Turn left onto Settlers Way (R72) Drive until the road becomes Fleet Street Turn left into Oxford Street (at traffic circle) Drive until Dawson Road intersection Turn right into Dawson Road Turn right again into the first entrance on the right (Guild Theatre) Park in most convenient parking.

From N2 (From north): Turn off at the Western Avenue turn-off Turn left into Meadow Road Turn right into Western Avenue Drive until road becomes Union Avenue Turn left into Dawson Road Turn right again into the first entrance on the right (Guild Theatre) Park in most convenient parking.