South African painting fetch high prices

Irma Stern's paintiog, Pondo woman, which she painted in 1929, and Maggie Laubser's Woman in a blue kopdoek, were recently sold at an art auction in Johannesburg for more than R5 milllion. Stern's painting went for R2,82 million, while Laubser's went for R2,42 million - way more than the expected R1,5 million and R1 million respectively. The Stern painting came from the private collection of a collector in Israel. Stern was born in South Africa in 1894. After the Anglo-Boer War, she left for Germany with her parents. In the 1920s she returned to South Africa but her work was criticised negatively. It was only in the 1940s that South Africans started appreciating her work. She died in Cape Town in 1966.

From harbour master's house to luxury hotel

The Dock House Hotel opened its doors recently. The luxurious hotel is in a renovated historic building which was built in 1863 and once was the home of the harbour engineer. It was also one of the last remaining heritage sites at the Victoria & Alfred Waterfront. All the rooms feature relics from the past, with some being adapted to function in the modern designs. The building has Victorian architectural details, thick walls, and the landmark Timeball Tower, which at one time guided vessels at sea. The property is perched on a cliff above the waterfront. The hotel belongs to the Ambassador Group, headed by the Markovitz and Swersky families. Neil Markovitz, son of the late Leon Markovitz, a former Cape Town mayor and property developer, runs the company. Abe Swersky is a divorce lawyer and racehorse owner.

Audio-visual guide for tourists

South Africa's first multi-lingual audio-visual guide for cellphones is ready for tourists. Mobiguide is a virtual travel guide and provides tourists with information about popular attractions. It is downloaded to a cellphone or personal media player. Mobiguide was created by Canadian Dan Seidman and South African Amanda Forsythe, who spent three years developing it. It was launched in Cape Town last month. Mobiguide delivers information in English, French, German and Mandarin. It will soon include Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Japanese, Xhosa and Zulu.

Baakens River Valley under threat

Another of South Africa's green lungs, the Baakens River Valley in Port Elizabeth, is under threat as developers exploit a legal loophole to build high-rise buildings on the edge of the once pristine valley. Ecologists claim developers are killing off local fauna and flora, while environmentalists claim developers are illegally connecting storm-water drains to an already-overloaded sewerage system. Despite a municipal ban on buildings higher than 8,2 metres on the Walmer side of the valley, there is no current height restriction for buildings on the Central side. In March 1997, the municipality adopted the Walmer Policy Plan to ensure the protection of the Baakens River Valley by restricting the heights of buildings. This was after an outcry after the construction of The Knysna, a luxury apartment block at the end of First Avenue. Already an eight-storey block of luxury apartments, Eco Edge, is being completed behind Greenwood Primary School. Another six storey-plus block on the adjoining erf, The Birkin, already has ground cleared for development. Another 11-storey luxury development is planned for the plot at the end of Jutland Crescent.

Albany Club headed by female

One of the oldest gentlemen's clubs in South Africa, the 113-year-old Albany Club at 114 High Street in Grahamstown, was saved by the woman who now heads the club. Club members include judges, advocates, attorneys, doctors, teachers, academics, farmers and business people. Eleanor Louw was recently elected as the first female president of Grahamstown‘s Albany Club. She is the financial manager of Kenrich Motors and a former national president of women‘s service organisation Soroptimist. Women were first admitted to the Albany Club in 1992. Before that women could only sit in the lounge and wait for their husbands. It was through the efforts of Port Elizabeth businesswoman Jenny Hartle, who settled in Grahamstown in the early 1990s and worked for Standard Bank, that women gained admittance. She was a member of the Port Elizabeth Club and had reciprocal rights, except at the Albany Club. Before Jenny could become a member, she was transferred and Eleanor became a member. In the mid- to late-1990s, the club was declining. Eleanor's husband, Neville, is an honorary life member and was on the club committee. She decided to help him and started started looking after the club‘s financial and administrative systems. The membership eventually grew to 250. The club‘s decor, much of it dating back to the 1890s, has been restored and the complex repainted. Membership costs R550 and is through a proposal system, followed by an approval period.

Deelkraal land claim

The farm Deelkraal in the Potchefstroom-Fochville-Carletonville area was subdivided a few years ago and the present owners are still waiting to hear whether their farms will be appropriated. Farmers believe the land claim is not valid, yet they cannot go on with developments or investments on their land until the Land Claims Court makes a decision. There are graves dating to 1865 belonging to Afrikaans people who lived there. According to research done by Dr. Sonja van Eeden of the North West University, the area was given to farmers on 03 June 1839. By 1839 a Harmse family was living on the present-day Buffelsdoorn farm in the Gatsrand. The farm Deelkraal was granted to W. Meintjies on 12 October 1839. The Land Claims Court can only look at the period after September 1913.

World's largest national flag

The Magaliesberg area recently saw the biggest national flag in the world displayed on Silkaatsnek. The replica ZAR flag is 18 250 m², weighs more than 3,5 ton and covers more than 1,8 ha. It took more than two hours to spread the flag out over Sikaatsnek. The flag was a Guinness world record attempt, organised by Edwin Leemans and the Brits community.

Memorial at Abrahamskraal

On 28 January 1902 there was a fierce battle between the British Royal Sussex Regiment and Boer commandos at Abrahamskraal in the Free State. Seven British and two Boers, including the farm owner, were killed on the battlefield that day. Three wounded British soldiers later died of their wounds. Last week a remembrance ceremony was held on a hill above Kalkfontein Dam, where Abrahamskraal used to be in the early days. A memorial plaque was unveiled, in honour of those who fell and the the 139 soldiers of the Royal Sussex Regiment who lost their lives during the Anglo-Boer War. The ceremony was attended by Brig. Andrew Mantell, the British military attaché in South Africa, and Maj. Charles Wilmot of the Royal Sussex Regiment Association.

Moffat Mission Station

The Moffat Mission Station in Kuruman should be declared a heritage site, according to Miss Dipuo Peters, the Northern Cape Premier, speaking at a recent plaque ceremony at the site. The Scottisih missionary, Robert Moffat, lived there from 1820 to 1870, and built the Moffat Church which was completed in 1838. The first Tswana Bible was also translated and printed there.

Khoisan have oldest genetics?

The Khoisan have, on their maternal side (mitochondrial DNS or mDNS), the oldest surviving branches of the human genetic family tree. They are said to have separated from the rest of the population about 90 000 and 150 000 years ago, and over a period of thousands of years, migrated to southern Africa where they lived in genetic isolation until 40 000 years ago. This is according to the Genographic Project and its initial findings published in the American Journal of Human Genetics. Researchers travelled the world to collect the mDNS of 624 indigenous people. According to Dr. Spencer Wells, director of the Genographic Project, the Khoisan's long isolation gave them a unique appearance.