Today we visited the Cradle of Humankind, a very special place for all human beings. It was in this place that the first homo genus species were found. It is a World Heritage Site located about an hour from Johannesburg in South Africa and takes up about 47,000 hectares of land. This lad consists of many limestone caves where many species have been discovered. Specifically, we went to the Maropeng museum and later in the day we walked through the Sterkfontein Caves. Maropeng is a word that in English means “returning to the place pf origin.” This is truly a place of origin for all mankind and somewhere everyone should visit in their lifetime.

The caves all around that have been excavated and archeologists hypothesize that in most of the caves, remnants of early species are there because man fell through lose ground or sinkholes, then can eventually close up and seal. Dolomite is a material that makes up many of these sites. Dolomite is not a stable rock but can act like a sponge and hold liquid for long period of times.

There have been many important discoveries at the Cradle of Humankind but the most recent was the discovery of Homo Naledi. Homo Naledi was discovered in 2013 in the Rising Star cave by Rick Hunter and Steven Tucker. This species is incredibly similar to us but with smaller brains and a smaller stature. The site where Homo Naledi was found is what archeologist assume was a grave site used by the species to deposit of their dead. The original fossils were in the museum for our group to see and compare to human bones.

The fossils discovered were from 15 individuals, ranging in age from baby to older adult. They were discovered very far away from any opening to the cave which I why archeologists believe this was a permanent home for this species. The bodies must have been put down the chute that archeologists used to enter the room and the bodies must already have been dead because no sign of struggle was seen.

After much research and collaboration, scientists were able to discover that the Homo Naledi was not very old. In fact, they discovered that Homo Naledi may have lived at the same time as our own species. Scientists do not know yet if these species interacted, but they do know that the species branched from our same genus.

The walk through this specific exhibit of the museum was powerful in how in truly brings every human being together in an unbreakable way. From everything I read, I have come to understand the saying “we are all African.” In a scientific way, this museum really shows that judging and separating based on things such as color, race, religion, or sexuality have no strong pull because we all originated from the same species. We are all homo sapiens who live on the same Earth. We have talked a lot in this class about race and the Apartheid, but I enjoyed the visit to the museum because it gave another perspective on why separating based physical attributes is just ridiculous. Seeing the origin of mankind helps me to see every person I pass as myself.

            This trip to the museum has brought to life the phrase ubuntu, “I am because we are”, much more to my experience here in South Africa as well. I understand my own humanity because I see the lineage of the human race and how we have all originated from one place. I can look at each person now as more similar to me than I did before as well. The trip was much more eye opening to my inner thoughts and feelings then I ever expected and I learned so much from visiting the Cradle of Humankind.

Today we visited the Cradle of Humankind, a very special place for all human beings. It was in this place that the first homo genus species were found. It is a World Heritage Site located about an hour from Johannesburg in South Africa and takes up about 47,000 hectares of land. This lad consists of many limestone caves where many species have been discovered. Specifically, we went to the Maropeng museum and later in the day we walked through the Sterkfontein Caves. Maropeng is a word that in English means “returning to the place pf origin.” This is truly a place of origin for all mankind and somewhere everyone should visit in their lifetime.

The caves all around that have been excavated and archeologists hypothesize that in most of the caves, remnants of early species are there because man fell through lose ground or sinkholes, then can eventually close up and seal. Dolomite is a material that makes up many of these sites. Dolomite is not a stable rock but can act like a sponge and hold liquid for long period of times.

There have been many important discoveries at the Cradle of Humankind but the most recent was the discovery of Homo Naledi. Homo Naledi was discovered in 2013 in the Rising Star cave by Rick Hunter and Steven Tucker. This species is incredibly similar to us but with smaller brains and a smaller stature. The site where Homo Naledi was found is what archeologist assume was a grave site used by the species to deposit of their dead. The original fossils were in the museum for our group to see and compare to human bones.

The fossils discovered were from 15 individuals, ranging in age from baby to older adult. They were discovered very far away from any opening to the cave which I why archeologists believe this was a permanent home for this species. The bodies must have been put down the chute that archeologists used to enter the room and the bodies must already have been dead because no sign of struggle was seen.

After much research and collaboration, scientists were able to discover that the Homo Naledi was not very old. In fact, they discovered that Homo Naledi may have lived at the same time as our own species. Scientists do not know yet if these species interacted, but they do know that the species branched from our same genus.

The walk through this specific exhibit of the museum was powerful in how in truly brings every human being together in an unbreakable way. From everything I read, I have come to understand the saying “we are all African.” In a scientific way, this museum really shows that judging and separating based on things such as color, race, religion, or sexuality have no strong pull because we all originated from the same species. We are all homo sapiens who live on the same Earth. We have talked a lot in this class about race and the Apartheid, but I enjoyed the visit to the museum because it gave another perspective on why separating based physical attributes is just ridiculous. Seeing the origin of mankind helps me to see every person I pass as myself.

            This trip to the museum has brought to life the phrase ubuntu, “I am because we are”, much more to my experience here in South Africa as well. I understand my own humanity because I see the lineage of the human race and how we have all originated from one place. I can look at each person now as more similar to me than I did before as well. The trip was much more eye opening to my inner thoughts and feelings then I ever expected and I learned so much from visiting the Cradle of Humankind.