After many moons, when there was a great sorrow in the land, a spirit, pitying the difficulties of mankind, descended from Heaven with a huge diamond-filled basket. It flew over the Vaal river, dropping handfuls of diamonds as it sped towards the place now called Kimberley. When it reached Kimberley, then covered with large trees, the spirit's toes got caught in a branch of a camelthorn. It tripped and spilled all its diamonds, thus forming Kimberley's vast gem deposits.

The diggers who once told such romantic legends about "a girl's best friend" are long gone, and, though diamonds may indeed be forever, the great days of Kimberley have passed. The few diamonds left are either too deep to recover from the volcanic pipes in which they were formed, or remain hidden in the crevices of that great river of diamonds, the Vaal. The giant mining conglomerate De Beers is slowly closing down operations in Kimberley - only another twenty years, they say, before they too go north into Africa like their first Chairman, Cecil Rhodes.

Today, Kimberley is the undiscovered gem of South Africa. Sun-drenched, it sprung up overnight, after diamonds were found in its dusty plains and barren kopjes. The discovery in 1866 of a shiny white pebble beside the Orange River by young Erasmus Jacobs dragged South Africa into the modern industrialised world. Named "Eureka", the white pebble was the first of many such fantastic finds, bringing fortune hunters to the rivers in their thousands. It also brought the local Griqua tribe into conflict with the Boer republic and imperialist Britain over land ownership, resulting in the diamond fields coming under British rule.

Shortly afterwards, diamonds found on Johannes and Nicholaas de Beers' farm (some 18 miles from Barkly West) sparked one of history's biggest rush of diggers. They converged in 1871 on what became known as Colesberg Kopje. Damon, a black labourer, was the man who discovered the world's richest diamond mine, but neither he nor the many thousands digging feverishly downwards made their fortunes from the shiny stones. Only a few men saw that the future lay in consolidating various mines and controlling diamond output so that the value remained constant or rose.

Those few men, notably Cecil Rhodes, Alfred Beit, Barney Barnato, and later Ernest Oppenheimer, joined forces in 1888, after bitter fighting, to form De Beers Consolidated Mines. That year also saw the world's worst diamond mine disaster, as 202 men died in an underground fire at the De Beers mine. The consolidation of the mines brought stability and respectability to the booming diamond town, and the 1892 International Exhibition attracted 400,000 visitors to Kimberley. The roads that wound round the diggers' tents during the 1870s remained, but the canvas had been replaced by sturdy mud-brick and corrugated iron houses. In the suburb of Belgravia, wealthy merchants and De Beers' directors vied for the finest mansions. By the time of the Jameson Raid in 1896, Kimberley was a most respectable town, and Rhodes was at the peak of his career.

But dark days were ahead. The Boer war of 1899-1902 destroyed the country, and Kimberley was besieged for 124 days by the Boer army. Two of the war's most significant battles were fought within 24 miles of the town. At Magersfontein, where the Highland Brigade walked into a fatal ambush in December 1899, an impressive audio-visual museum presentation now depicts the battle. The battle of Paardeberg, where Lord Roberts forced the surrender of over 4000 Boers in February 1900, was the turning point of the war and the Southern Hemisphere's biggest battlefield until the 1981 Falklands conflict. The N12 Battlefield route between Kimberley and Hopetown (120km) brings history to life and makes you truly wonder about the futility of war.

During the siege, America's unsung hero George Labram saved Kimberley by ensuring water from the mines after the supply from the Vaal was cut off. He also designed and built the famous 28-pounder "Long Cecil" gun, which could outfire any of the same calibre in the world.

The unique "Long Cecil" now stands on the stylobate of the imposing Honoured Dead Memorial. Rhodes' brainchild, the monument was designed by Sir Herbert Baker in tribute to those who fell during the siege. The inscription is by Rhodes' great friend, Rudyard Kipling.

It has been said that Cecil Rhodes was De Beers and De Beers was Kimberley. Certainly, wherever you go in Kimberley today you cannot ignore the influence of both Rhodes and his mining company. The Kimberley Club is a living memorial to the halcyon days of the diamond diggers, in particular to Rhodes and the Oppenheimer family. It swirls with history, once boasting more millionaires under its roof than anywhere in the world. A walk through the bar, reading room, billiard room, dining room and lounge, with their treasure troves of artifacts, is deeply evocative.

Rhodes's old Boardroom, scene of so many deals, still stands on the edge of "his" mine, while the De Beers Head Office, built by Barney Barnato before the amalgamation and inherited by Rhodes, is still where the diamond world's most important decisions are taken. The town's Africana Library, now one of South Africa's best research libraries, was a benefaction from Rhodes, and the Halfway House drive-in bar was famed as the watering hole where he stopped between mines for a drink on horseback. The bar received its unusual licence because Rhodes hated dismounting to be served, and so passed a special law in the Cape Parliament. Nowadays, you can be served without getting out of your car: simply toot your horn (at night, flash your lights)! Then sit back and enjoy.

The McGregor Museum, once Rhodes's 1897 Sanatorium, has reconstructed the rooms he used during the siege, as part of its permanent exhibition. The Ancestor's Gallery, which depicts the history of Northern Cape province, makes the museum modern South Africa's pacemaker.

Perhaps the most impressive of Kimberley's many statues is that of Rhodes on horseback, featuring three of his notable achievements cast in bronze around the base: receiving his degree at Oxford, talking peace with the Matabele indunas and addressing Parliament while Premier.

Nevertheless, Kimberley's biggest physical attraction remains the Big Hole (one of the town's five mines), which produced 12.5 million carats of diamonds. The Hole, still the world's largest dug by pick and shovel, is an unbelievable sight: 215m deep with a perimeter of 1.6km. Adjacent is the Kimberley Mine Museum, Africa's first open-air museum. A reconstructed late 19th century diggers' village contains original buildings including Barney Barnato's boxing academy, Gowie's Corner and Digger's Rest pub.

The town's tram service, complete with original 1887-style car, takes visitors from the magnificent Victorian City Hall to the Mine Museum, passing many historical buildings, such as Diamond Lil's "Star of the West" pub and the De Beers Head Office.

Just over a kilometre's drive away, through winding city-centre streets bustling with traders, is Rhodes' mine, De Beers. Larger than the "Big Hole", it was partly machine-dug and is currently being filled in. Rhodes' dreamed-of Cape-to-Cairo railway line runs around the southern perimeter of this massive crater.

Beyond what was once Kimberley's sister municipality of Beaconsfield, with many heritage sites, including the old Magistrate's Court and Phoenix Hotel, is the first mine discovered, Dutoitspan. Here, visitors can go underground (wearing regulation clothes and safety gear), mix with miners, perhaps even see a diamond being found. It's an unforgettable experience.

Equally impressive is South Africa's highest graded art museum, William Humphrey's Gallery, which displays many Flemish, Dutch, French and English Old Masters and a grand collection of indigenous art.

Kimberley's Malay Camp was destroyed in the 1950s, but its favourite son, Solomon Plaatje, is remembered with a museum in his old house on the fringes of the camp. Plaatje made exceptional contributions to literature and journalism, and was the first black South African to write a novel in English. He translated Shakespeare into a native language and was also a founder member and the first Secretary-General of the African National Congress.

Kimberley is rich in heritage sites (the old market square, the magnificent synagogue) and fantastic old buildings, the majority Victorian or early Edwardian. A walk through the streets brings back the glory of its heyday. You see and feel the history that made Kimberley famous. On Chapel Street, you expect to meet Cecil Rhodes on his horse, perhaps stooping to speak to Alfred Beit. On a quiet night, you can imagine the laughter from the bars as Barney Barnato cracks another joke.

Kimberley and her diamonds may have sparked the industrialisation of South Africa and paved the way for the development of the gold fields, but before time began it was the Khoisan (Bushmen) that roamed this land, unaware of the treasures hidden under their feet. Their legacy remains on rocky outcrops and glacial pavements in ancient riverbeds. Kimberley is the centre of thousands of sites such as Wildebeestkuil and Nooitgedacht, where Bushman lifestyles are pictured for all time in rock art and ancient settlements. The region is even considered by some to be the cradle of mankind.

Kimberley-based Steve Lunderstedt is an historian, researcher, and tour operator, specialising on Kimberley and Southern African conflicts. He has written seven publications.

Kimberley Factfile

Museums and Galleries

Kimberley Mine Museum (and Big Hole), Tucker Street. Open daily 8am- 6pm. Entrance fee: R15.00

McGregor Museum. Mon-Sat: 9am - 5pm; Sun: 2pm - 5pm. Entrance: R5.00

William Humphrey's Art Gallery, off Jan Smuts Boulevard. Mon-Sat: 10am - 5pm. Sundays and public holidays: 2am - 5pm. Entrance: R2.00

Sol Plaatjie Museum, 22 Angel Street. The life and times of the great writer, as well as a display on the role of Africans during the Boer War. Open Mon-Fri: 9am - 5pm. Entrance: R5.00

Diggers' Museum, Barkly West. (Booking essential.)

Duggan-Cronin Ethnographic Gallery, Egerton Road. Mon-Sat: 9am - 5pm. Sun: 2pm - 5pm. Entrance: R5.00

Old McGregor Museum, Chapel Street. Displays of minerals as well as the prehistory of the Northern Cape.

Freddie Tait Golf Museum. Based at the Kimberley Golf Club, the world's second-oldest golf museum is a memorial to the British amateur golfing champion killed in the Boer War, and to golfers of yesteryear. No entrance fee.

Clyde 'N' Terry Militaria Collection, MOTH Centre, Memorial Road. A private collection of militaria including tanks, anti-aircraft guns, weapons, uniforms, badges, medals and much more. No entrance fee, donation.

Pioneers of Aviation, Magersfontein Road. On the site of South Africa's first flying school (est. 1912), the museum is a reconstruction of the hangar and contains a replica of a Compton-Paterson biplane. Mon-Sat: 9am - 3pm. Sun: 2pm - 5pm. Entrance: R2.00

Railway Museum, Railway Station, Quinn's Road. A superb museum highlighting the role of the train in the Northern Cape. Mon-Fri: 10am - 3pm. No entrance fee, donations welcome.

Magersfontein Battlefield and Museum. Modern museum with audiovisual display and information panels. Tea room and restaurant specialising in excellent Afrikaans dishes on-site. Open daily: 8am - 5pm. Entrance: R5.00.

Tours

Underground Diamond Mine: an exciting tour of an operational diamond mine where you mix with the miners themselves. Half-day. Bookings essential, weekdays only, over-16s only.

Surface Tour: an interesting above-ground tour of the historic and still operational Bultfontein and Dutoitspan mines.

Diggers: a half- or full-day visit to the alluvial diggings at romantic Gong Gong, Delport's Hope, Klipdrift and Beaumont's Folly. Watch small-time diggers compete with large industrial concerns in recovering diamonds from the Vaal river.

Ghost Tour: an evening tour of some of Kimberley's 126 haunted buildings.

Rhodes: follow in Rhodes' footsteps around Kimberley. Many sites visited as you hear the entrepreneur's personal story.

Belgravia: a walking tour around Belgravia, a local heritage suburb with many historical houses.

Sol Plaatjie: a four-hour tour around the townships and sites associated with Sol Plaatje. Also visited are the house of Robert Sobukwe, the prominent anti-apartheid activist, and a classic tavern.

Phokwani: fascinating tour of Chief Galeshewe's domain. Scenery, African culture and history in one day.

Siege of Kimberley: a grand half-day tour visiting all the pertinent sites of the 124-day siege, including many memorials, forts and battlefields. (A tremendous variety of battlefields can be visited, from the Anglo-Boer War and historic local uprisings. Most are half- or full-day tours with lunch on the veld under acacia trees.)

Accommodation

Kimberley Club: the most historic place to stay. Drink where Rhodes did, and weigh yourself in the famous weighing chair. Tourists are also welcome to visit the Club, but are first requested to contact the Secretary.

Carrington Lodge: Kimberley's best value for money, this lodge is normally fully booked.

Langberg Lodge: situated on a working farm 21km out of town, this historic lodge is on the Magersfontein Battlefield. Great cuisine, and very different atmosphere.

Savoy Hotel: currently being revamped, a traditional family-run hotel reminiscent of the mining magnates' lifestyle.

Published in Travel Africa Edition Thirteen: Autumn 2000 Text is subject to Worldwide Copyright (c)