02. Who are we?
http://www.solms-delta.co.za/heritage/museum-van-de-caab/
The Museum van de Caab at the Solms-Delta Wine Estate tells the story of Delta farm, a story that is typical of so many of the old farms in the Drakenstein Valley. At the Museum, we try to tell this story through the subjective viewpoints of individual people – which is the defining philosophy behind the Museum. While many other places of interest to the public give general histories, what makes this Franschhoek Valley museum unique is the real voices of individual people, through which the farm’s story is told. These individual voices facilitate a personal connection between the present and the past, which could not be established through abstract facts and figures. Both the historical and the archaeological traces of the people who lived on the farm are part of the displays and these elements embody the major themes of the Museum. However, the story of Delta farm cannot stand on its own. Its significance lies in its relationship to greater events and historical processes that shaped the human fabric of the Drakenstein Valley, and on a broader scale, South African society as a whole.
The story is told in the Museum both chronologically and thematically, starting from the very beginnings of human settlement on the farm, through pre-colonial pastoral usage of the land, the establishment of private ownership through colonial viticulture, the scars left by slavery and apartheid, and beyond, to the establishment of a democratic South Africa and our hopes for the future – always contextualising the story of the farm in relation to the country as a whole. This Museum is aimed at everyone – those who visit for entertainment purposes as part of a tourist activity, those who utilise the space for research and educational purposes (both child and adult learning will be targeted), as well as those who see it as a vehicle for studying their family and community history or identity. The Museum will attempt to offer a meaningful forum for open, personal and community dialogue, interaction and interpretation as ‘people’s sense of their history enters into their engagement with others, with exhibitions, and with their own notions of identity’.
The Museum van de Caab hopes to be exactly what its name refers to – ‘from the Cape’ – a unique vernacular project embodying the spirit, pride and complex history of democratic South Africa. The museum is open seven days a week. Sunday and Monday from 9:00am to 5:00pm and Tuesday to Saturday from 9:00am to 6:00pm. Admission and a museum tour is free of charge. Contact Solms-Delta on 021 874 3937 or email museum@solms-delta.co.za.
