The CP Nel Museum is a museum in Oudtshoorn , South Africa , which houses exhibits depicting the role of the ostrich trade in the town's history, as well as the cultural history and lifestyle of the people of the Little Karoo region, as it was during the Victorian era and early 20th century.
24-482: The original building was designed and erected in 1906 by a local British architect, Charles Bullock, and was opened in 1907 as the Oudtshoorn Boys' High School. A school hall was added to the building in 1912 by J.E. Vixeboxse. By 1963, when Oudtshoorn's single-sex schools were amalgamated, the building was in such a state of disrepair that it was almost demolished. However, a petition by the school's alumni convinced
48-467: A garage of historical vehicles. The CP Nel Museum is one of a few secular museums in the world to house a synagogue. At the suggestion of Isidore Barron, who had been a member of the museum's Board of Trustees, the Jewish gallery was opened in 1973. This room is a reconstruction of the old St. John Street Synagogue as it was in 1896, and depicts the contribution of Oudtshoorn's Lithuanian Jewish community to
72-872: A number of trust funds established for the care of particular sites or types of heritage and derived income from properties which it owned, most notably Dal Josaphat near Paarl in the Western Cape. The following organisations are successors to the National Monuments Council: In Namibia the National Heritage Council is the successor in all respects whereas in South Africa the National Heritage Resources Act, specifically, but not exclusively Sections11-13, 23–26 and 58 thereof, establish how responsibilities are divided between
96-548: Is borne out by the fact that around half of the national monuments declared by the NMC were located in what is now the Western Cape Province. Most of the period of existence the NMC fell within the apartheid era. During this period the organisation was governed by a Council made up exclusively of white South Africans and had a professional staff of similar composition. However, from not long after PW Botha's introduction of
120-583: Is the inclusion of a padrão in the centre of the castle gateway, a symbol of the Portuguese 'discovery' of Africa and apparently symbolic of the inclusion of South West Africa (now Namibia ) within the area of jurisdiction of the organisation. The Head Office of the National Monuments Council was in Cape Town and for most of its existence was the only base from which the organisation operated. From
144-575: The National Monuments Commission to withdraw this recommendation. The Education Department decided instead to sell the building. It was renamed in honour of Colonel CP Nel, who had bequeathed a valuable collection of antiques to the public. These antiques were transferred to the building in 1972, and the CP Nel Museum was officially opened. In 1979, the building was declared a national monument . The school hall has been repurposed as
168-579: The Outeniqua Mountains via ox-wagon. It had been ordered by Oudtshoorn resident Pierre Olivier in 1904, who decided to donate it to what was then the local boys' school. The clock was built into the tower in 1907. The building's sandstone facade is considered one of the finest examples of stone masonry in the Little Karoo. Willem Adriaan Cruywagen , the Minister of National Education who declared
192-621: The South African Heritage Resources Agency and provincial heritage resources authorities . South African Heritage Resources Agency The South African Heritage Resources Agency ( SAHRA ) is the national administrative body responsible for the protection of South Africa 's cultural heritage . It was established through the National Heritage Resources Act, number 25 of 1999 and together with provincial heritage resources authorities
216-788: The Tricameral Parliament in 1984 the membership of the Council included one representative from each of the Coloured and Indian communities. During the de Klerk era (1989–1994) the organisation began to shift focus and declared a number of sites important to the history of the African community, including those associated with anti-apartheid movements, commencing with the declaration of the Sol Plaatje House in Kimberley in 1992. From 1994, under
240-470: The "Ostrich Hall" in order to exhibit the history of the ostrich in the Little Karoo's development. It includes in its displays a rock that has carved into it an image of running ostriches, which was discovered in the Sahara Desert . "Feather-boom fashions" are also on display. The museum also exhibits an early 20th-century pharmacy; a crockery collection; military history and weapons; musical instruments; and
264-589: The National Heritage Resources Act in 1999, the records and in some cases staff of these offices were taken over by provincial heritage resources authorities . The National Monuments Council received the bulk of its funds as a transfer payment from the department of the Minister responsible for culture. For most of its history this was the Department of National Education, but after 1994 the Department of Arts, Culture Science and Technology. The organisation also administered
SECTION 10
#1732854814578288-469: The National Monuments Council is the bronze badge which still adorns most provincial heritage sites in South Africa and heritage places in Namibia. The term 'national monument' is still used by most South Africans and Namibians to refer to anything protected in terms of heritage legislation. More fundamental inheritances of present heritage resources authorities are: The logo of the National Monuments Council
312-563: The building a national monument, gave the following reasoning for the certification: Designed in part by Bullock and Vixseboxe, the well known architects, it reflects the former's copiousness and the latter's Transvaal Republic influence. Especially worthy of note is the facade, with its harmonious blending of styles and its impressive dome tower. [...] 33°35′31″S 22°12′07″E / 33.59194°S 22.20194°E / -33.59194; 22.20194 National Monuments Commission The National Monuments Council (NMC)
336-603: The mid-1980s 'regional offices' were established. The first was in Pretoria to service the then Transvaal province and thereafter in the other two provinces of the time, the Orange Free State ( Bloemfontein ) and Natal (initially Durban , but later Pietermaritzburg ) provinces. The Cape Province came to be served by regional offices in Cape Town (Western Cape), Kimberley (Northern Cape) and Grahamstown (Eastern Cape). An office
360-611: The ostrich industry. The synagogue is still occasionally used for services. The ticket price includes admission to the Le Roux Townhouse, which is decorated in authentic Victorian-era furniture, and depicts a "feather palace" during the Ostrich booms. In 2014, the museum updated its material to recognise the historical forced removals of non-whites from Oudtshoorn, and made its explanatory notes available in English, Afrikaans , and Xhosa ,
384-464: The post-Apartheid government, the make-up and focus of the organisation began to change to reflect the changes in South African society. During this period the composition of the council and professional staff came to reflect the demographics of the country and a concerted effort was made to declare sites that reflected a broader national heritage. At the end of March 2000 the National Monuments Council
408-569: The three official provincial languages of the Western Cape . The building is a specimen of late Victorian, Colonial-style architecture , and the hall is built in the New Republican style. The museum's 30-metre-high clock tower is adorned with Corinthian ornaments and is topped with a wrought-iron dome. The clock was made in England in 1902, and was transported in parts to Mossel Bay and then over
432-479: Was a statutory body, semi-independent of government and presided over by a council appointed by the Minister responsible for culture. It had its head office in Cape Town rather than the national capital Pretoria . This reflected its preoccupation with the heritage of the early colonial (Dutch) period, the area around Cape Town being the most densely colonised during that time and hence the area in which most remnants of Dutch colonialism in South Africa are located. This
456-633: Was almost the same as that used by its predecessor, the Historical Monuments Commission . It depicts the entrance gate of the Cape Town Castle (the first historical monument to be declared by the commission) surrounded by a wreath of King Proteas (South Africa's national flower) and capped with the national coat of arms that was used between 1910 and 2000. The only change from the Historical Monuments Commission period
480-469: Was also established in Windhoek , the capital of the South African governed territory of South West Africa . Following the establishment of nine provinces in 1994 the boundaries of the regions served were brought into line with those of provinces and over the next few years what were now called 'provincial offices' were established in those provinces that did not yet have an office. With the coming into effect of
504-638: Was created and is the responsibility of SAHRA. In 1990, when the territory of South West Africa became Namibia, the National Monuments Act remained in force and a National Monuments Council was established for the newly independent country. This organisation continued to operate until the promulgation of the Namibian Heritage Act of 2004 in terms of which the National Heritage Council was established. The most noticeable legacy of
SECTION 20
#1732854814578528-470: Was replaced by SAHRA and the provincial heritage resources authorities established in terms of the National Heritage Resources Act of 1999. The National Monuments Council was the successor to the Historical Monuments Commission which had been in existence since 1923 and upon its creation the 'historical monuments' declared by the Commission became known as 'national monuments'. Like its predecessor it
552-477: Was replaced by the South African Heritage Resources Agency , SAHRA, and over the following years the establishment of provincial heritage resources authorities saw the shift of the majority of its functions to provincial level. In terms of Section 58 of the National Heritage Resources Act national monuments became the responsibility of provincial heritage resources authorities and are now known as provincial heritage sites . A new category of national heritage site
576-431: Was the national heritage conservation authority of South Africa , and therefore also of Namibia , during the major part of the apartheid era. It was the successor body to the Historical Monuments Commission and became known principally for its declaration of several thousand national monuments. It came into being through the promulgation of the National Monuments Act of 1969 and ceased to exist on 31 March 2000 when it
#577422