Count Natale Labia legacy fading without care

Count Natale Labia wants the government to give back the house his father built. The 20-room Italianate mansion overlooks the sea in Muizenberg. Count Natale Labia senior was Italy's consul in South Africa. He built The Fort, as it was named, in the style of 18th century Venice, the city of his ancestors. The furniture and fittings were all Venetian. After his death in 1936, the house was leased first to the Canadians and the Argentinians for use as an embassy. In 1985 Count Natale Labia (Luccio), the son, donated The Fort and all its contents, including many valuable paintings, to the government, on condition it was run as a museum for the benefit of the community. F.W. de Klerk, then Minister of Education, officially opened it. It became a venue for exhibitions, lectures, musical recitals and art classes, and had its own restaurant. In 2005 the Department of Arts and Culture closed it and stopped financial support. Since then the government has hired it out for film and photographic shoots. The Fort is not well-cared for. A caretaker is employed by Count Labia to live on the property he no longer owns, to try and give some kind of protection. The laminated windows have become opaque because of water seepage. Inside walls are peeling and mouldy, vases are cracked, the crystal chandeliers are grime encrusted, hinges are broken, brass fittings are missing, carpets are stained, there are cigarette burns in antique chairs, and a R450 000 painting by James Stark has disappeared. Count Natale Labia believes the government has breached the conditions of the donation and he is trying to recover the house and its contents.

Money for libraries and museums

Community libraries country-wide have been allocated R338 million for the current financial year in an effort to promote a culture of reading. Arts and Culture Minister Pallo Jordan announced that the National Library will receive R65.3 million while national museums will receive R409.9 million.

The minister also allocated R1 million towards the building of a library in Timbuktu, Mali, a donation which follows the signing of a Bi-National Agreement between South Africa and Mali. He said this stipulates commitment to fund-raising and providing assistance toward the construction of a new library and archive for the Ahmed Baba Institute. Other aims are to assist in marketing the heritage value of the Timbuktu Manuscripts. The Timbuktu Manuscripts are the first New Partnership for Africa's Development [NEPAD] Cultural Project which requires the support of government departments. Timbuktu is the historic city in Mali where ancient manuscripts dating back to the early 13th century were found. After visiting Mali in 2001, President Thabo Mbeki pledged to assist with the restoration and conservation of the ancient manuscripts in Timbuktu, which were in poor conditions. An inter-governmental agreement between South Africa and Mali was signed in 2002 and the project to restore the Timbuktu manuscripts was officially launched in 2003. The project has since been declared an official South African Presidential Project and has also been endorsed by the NEPAD as its first cultural project.

Anglo-Boer War cannon in Ottawa

The Battle of Witkloof (aka the Battle of Leliefontein), south-east of Belfast, took place on 07 November 1900, during the Anglo-Boer War. In 1951 it was still remembered with an annual service and parade - in Ottawa, Canada - on 07 November. A memorial service was also held at Witkloof each year until 07 November 1964.

On the morning of 24 January 1900, Cmdt. Hendrik Frederik Prinsloo, led the small Carolina Commando to the top of Spioenkop. During the defence along the Tugela River, this small mounted united was of vital importance. Prinsloo and his 11 year old son supplied fresh horses for the unit. In November 1900 the unit focused on the important Delagoa Bay railway line. Gen.-Maj. Sir Horace Smith-Dorrien was tasked with stopping them. He referred to them as "brave risk takers who tested us like Cossacks". On 06 November the General and his 1400 men and six cannons were on their way to Carolina. Gen. J.C. Fourie and Cmdt. Prinsloo were top riders, but that morning both their horses were difficult to handle. The two forces clashed at Witkloof. In the final advance, Fourie and Prinsloo decided to take the cannons. Three Canadians risked their lives to save the cannons. Fourie and Prinsloo were killed, and Gen. Grobler was wounded. Of the 95 Colonial troops lost, 31 were Canadian. The day after the battle, Ou Mei, Prinsloo's faithful musket bearer (agterryer), took a letter from Smith-Dorrien dated 07 November (written before the battle), and Prinsloo's bush hat back to Mrs. Prinsloo. The battle took place within sight of Prinsloo's farmhouse, where his wife and children were. The Canadians won three Victoria Crosses and one D.S.O. in this battle. After the war, Smith-Dorrien collected money in London and built a memorial for the two Boer officers.

Cmdt. Hendrik Frederik Prinsloo was a descendant of a Slagtersnek Rebel. He was born in 1861 near Kroonstad and given his father's names. As a child, he moved to the Lydenburg area with his parents. He started his military career in 1880-1881 when he took part in the first Anglo-Boer War. Two years later, he risked his life during the Mapog War, when he rescued a wounded comrade. In 1896 he was made a Firld Cornet in the Carolina Commando.

Old technology museum

Malcolm Anderson's private museum is for anyone who loves technology - machinery, equipment, engines. Anderson (62) lives on a property overlooking the Byrne Valley in KwaZulu-Natal. He's been collecting old things for about 50 years. The museum is open to the public and is situated on Minerva private nature reserve. He has several business interests in Richmond. There are several thousand items on display, including a jaw harp, an iron lung and a Morse code machine. The museum houses a collection of old vehicles, petrol bowsers, woodworking equipment, dentistry equipment, water pumps, steam-driven machinery, household items like typewriters, irons, fans, lights, kitchen equipment, telephones and valve radios, agricultural machinery, including a rare Rollo tractor built in Scotland, a winnower and a potato sorter, both built in the 1800s. Anderson and a friend, Chris Tilbury, work with a team of artisans to restore engines before they are put on display. His collecting tris have taken him to Mozambique, Namibia, the Western Cape, the Karoo and the Eastern Cape. In Prince Alfred he found an old washing machine with a hand-operated mangle. In the Karoo he found an engine used to pump water from a borehole when there was no wind to drive the windmill. It was built in Australia in 1917. In a Richmond attic he found an automatic soda water machine built by Flugel and Company of London. The iron lung, built by the German company Lubeck, was found in Umkomaas. To safeguard the future of the collection, Anderson has created a trust. He and Tilbury are members of the Natal Vintage Tractor and Machinery Club. The museum has a pub housed in a converted railway cattle car that includes the original “hole in the floor” toilet. There is a self-catering guest house on the 3 500-hectare nature reserve.

Rhino horn stolen from museums

Thieves recently stole two horns from a mounted white rhinoceros at the Iziko South African Museum in Cape Town. The theft is the latest in a series targeting rhino horn at museums. The thieves smashed a reinforced glass cabinet and ripped the horns off one specimen, but could not remove those from another, even though the museum had 24-hour security. The two rhinos on display were historical specimens, dating back to the late 19th century. In 2002 a thief stole an 80cm horn off a specimen of white rhino in the Transvaal Museum in Pretoria. Two years ago thieves broke into the Reinet House Museum in Graaff-Reinet and made off with the horn of a rhino shot in the area 120 years ago. A group of armed men had also stolen horn from the King William's Town Museum.

Valuable donation to museum

The Van Tilburg Museum at the University of Pretoria (UP) houses a collection of about 8000 ceramic pieces. The latest addition comes from the van Zyl family. A rare porcelain serving plate, made in England in 1901, was donated by Lynette van Zyl. The plate belonged to her grandmother who bought it during the Anglo-Boer War. The plate was made by Ceramic Art Company Ltd. of Crown Potteries in Stoke-on-Trent. The donation is in accordance with Lynette's parents' wishes. Percy and Jeanette van Rooijen passed away in 2007.

Bram Fischer birthday exhibition

Bram Fischer would have been 100 years old this year. The National Museum in Bloemfontein recently received a collection of objects that belonged to him. They were donated by his daughters, Ruth Rice and Ilse Wilson, and include the christening robe in which Bram was christened, the rugby jersey and shorts he wore during the Test match between the Free State and the All Blacks at Ramblers in 1928, and a wooden toy chameleon made for him by one of the rebels who was involved in the 1914 Rebellion. Bram had strong family ties with the city - he was born in Bloemfontein in 1908 and died there in 1975. To celebrate his birthday centenary, an exhibition on Bram will be opened by Ilse at the National Museum on 23 April.

Durban Holocaust Centre opened

Six million Jews died in the Holocaust. Durban now has its own place of remembrance for them. The Durban Holocaust Centre, housed at the Durban Jewish Centre in Old Fort Road, was recently opened. One of the guest speakers was a local resident who survived the holocaust, Jack Puterman. The centre was designed by Linda Bester, who also designed the Cape Town Holocaust Centre. It cost more than R1-million and was financed by the local Jewish community. Mary Kluk, president of the Council of KwaZulu-Natal Jewry, came up with the idea. Visitors can trace the rise of the Third Reich propaganda machine, the labour, concentration and the death camps. A replica gas chamber was recreated. The centre is awaiting permission from Anne Frank House in Holland for a replica of the bedroom where she hid. A Garden of Remembrance contains six fountains - one for each of the million Jews killed. For more info, contact Maureen at 031-368-6833.

Afrikaans language museum

The Afrikaans language has its own private museum. The Huis vir Afrikaanse poësie (hAp) in Capital Park, Pretoria, is being set up as a private museum by Charl Pretorius. It will open to the public in July. The history of the language, alongside that of Namakwa-Afrikaans, Bo-Kaap-Afrikaans, Oranjerivier-Afrikaans and other dialects, will be on display. The museum is looking for any donations of Afrikaans historical items.

Mandela Family Museum renovations

Former President Nelson Mandela's house in Orlando West, Soweto, will undergo renovations to restore it to its original state, according to the Soweto Heritage Trust. The house, now called the Mandela Family Museum, at 8115 Ngakane Street, will be closed until November while work is in progress. Mandela moved into the four-roomed house in 1946 with his first wife, Evelyn Ntoko Mase. After their divorce in 1957, she moved out. When Mandela married Winnie Madikizela in 1958, she moved in and while he was imprisoned on Robben Island, she lived there with their daughters, Zeni and Zindzi. When the couple divorced in 1996, Mandela registered the house in his name and handed it to the Soweto Heritage Trust. As part of the renovations, a visitor's centre will be built on the property, which will also depict Soweto's history. A curio shop will also be opened.

Langenhoven Arts and Culture Centre

Prof. Guillaume Brümmer, Cornelis Jacobus Langenhoven's only grandson, attended the recent opening of the Langenhoven Arts and Culture Centre at Arbeidsgenot in Oudtshoorn. Arbeidsgenot was Langenhoven's last residence. The Langenhoven Memorial Trust was established in 1951 after Vroutjie (Langenhoven's wife, Magdalena Maria) left Arbeidsgenot to the country as an arts and culture centre. Langenhoven was the author of Die Stem van Suid-Afrika. Future plans include a statue of Langenhoven and Enoch Sontonga (authour of Nkosi Sikelel’ iAfrika) being erected at the centre. The two were born in the same year, 1873. Their compositions make up South Africa's national anthem.