Hall of Heroes
The marble frieze.
Ymblanter — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Ymblanter — CC BY-SA 4.0 · John Walker, Images of Africa Taken from de-Wikipedia, where it had been uploaded by Head under the same filename. — Public domain
A massive granite monument about forty metres high on a hill south of Pretoria, built to honour the Voortrekkers, settlers of Dutch descent who left the Cape Colony in ox wagons for the interior between 1835 and 1854, in what is known as the Great Trek. It was designed by the architect Gerard Moerdijk and opened in 1949. In the Hall of Heroes inside, a marble frieze among the longest in the world tells the story of the trek in relief. Below lies the Cenotaph Hall, where an opening in the dome lets a ray of sunlight fall on the central inscription at noon on 16 December each year. The monument represents the Afrikaner telling of history, so today it is read alongside Freedom Park on the facing hill, which presents the story of the liberation struggle; visiting both makes a lesson in the country's complex past. The ticket covers the monument and museum, you can climb to the roof for views over Pretoria, and the site sits in a small nature reserve. Prices and hours are on the official site.
The marble frieze.
The sunbeam.
Views over Pretoria.
Monument Hill, south of Pretoria
The Great Trek of settlers of Dutch descent who left the Cape Colony for the interior between 1835 and 1854.
