STS 52 AND THE EVOLUTIONARY CONTEXT OF AUSTRALOPITHECUS AFRICANUS: INSIGHTS INTO HOMININ DIVERSITY, ADAPTATION, AND THE ORIGINS OF MODERN HUMAN TRAITS
By: Lazarus Kgasi, Junior Curator, DITSONG: National Museum of Natural History Figure A. Maxilla of Sts 52 (@L Kgasi). The hominin fossil Sts 52 (see figure 1), a partial cranium of Australopithecus africanus from Sterkfontein, South Africa, provides valuable insights into a
HIGH TEA IN THE LATE 19TH CENTURY
By: Dineo Maloka, Junior Curator – DITSONG: National Museum of Cultural History Introduction During the 19th century ‘high tea’ was more than a culinary tradition; it was a significant cultural and social phenomenon. It functioned as a contested site of gendered agency,
THAUMA: HOW MUSEUMS REMEMBER THEMSELVES
By: David Rilley-Harris, Curator, DITSONG: National Museum of Military History (DNMMH) Thauma – a way to another world. (Picture: DITSONG: National Museum of Military History. The Rand Regiments Memorial). If you have ever paused before an object in a museum and felt an
THE HISTORY OF SWARTKRANS: A WINDOW INTO DEEP TIME
By: Lazarus Kgasi, Junior Curator, DITSONG: National Museum of Natural History The Swartkrans cave complex, located northwest of Johannesburg, South Africa, is among the world's most significant palaeoanthropological sites. Its history of scientific research spans over seven decades and can be divided
TELEPHONES, MOTOR CARS AND FILM: TECHNOLOGY IN KRUGER’S TIME
By: Jaco Schoonraad, Site Curator: DITSONG: Kruger Museum and DITSONG: Sammy Marks Museum Introduction During Paul Kruger’s presidency, the Zuid-Afrikaansche Republiek (ZAR) was not isolated from the rapid technological advances of the late 19th century. Pretoria gained its first telephone exchange in
THE SEXTON: SELF-PROPELLED 25-POUNDER GUN
By: Michael Tobolo, Junior Curator, DITSONG: National Museum of Military History Introduction The Sexton S P 25-pounder gun was developed when the British and Canadian Armies recognised the need for a mobile artillery piece that could keep pace with tanks across all
DIFFERENCES BETWEEN DINOFELIS BARLOWI AND DINOFELIS PIVETEAUI: MORPHOLOGY, EVOLUTION, AND HABITATS
By: Lazarus Kgasi, Junior Curator, DITSONG: National Museum of Natural History Dinofelis, an extinct genus of saber-toothed cats, is well-presented in South Africa's fossil record. Its remains have been found at several key sites, including the Pliocene deposits at Langebaanweg in