Roodepoort Museum, Gauteng

Roodepoort Museum, Gauteng

Set in the Roodepoort Civic Centre on Christiaan de Wet Road, the Roodepoort Museum capably covers Roodepoort’s long and diverse history, which dates back to 1884, despite having had to shut its doors briefly in 2006 due to budgetary constraints.

Re-opened due to the local community’s tireless campaigning, Roodepoort’s Museum contains 10 000 items that include porcelain, from Royal Dux and Royal Dorchester, to Chinese, Japanese and Dutch items – a collection rarely seen elsewhere. There is also a collection of local ceramics. Other items of note include art deco figurines a Jackson Hlungwane sculpture, a 1699 Dutch family bible, and Irma Stern, Walter Battiss and Maggie Laubscher paintings.

Whilst most of the diverse and incredible collection is now housed at Museum Africa, there are still 1500 items on display at the Roodepoort Museum, which boasts a pioneer farmhouse that dates back to the mid-1800s and a Victorian house. The highlight of any visit here is the exhibit of an early Voortrekker house, full of period furniture. Other rooms in the museum include a 1920s lounge, complete with a stand-up long-playing record player, and the art gallery, which features some of South Africa’s greats.

Whilst Roodepoort is now a huge residential area that includes areas of light industry and small businesses, it bears reflecting that before 1884 the area was settled by Boer farmers on only nine farms in this area, dominated by the red soil that gave rise to its name.

Visiting hours:
Tuesday to Friday 09:30-16:30; Sunday 14:00-17:00; Closed on Public Holidays
Telephone: +27 (0)11 761-0225 / 9 (Please book for groups of more than ten people).