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Groot Constantia is one of the oldest wine estates in South Africa
and a wonderful family destination. From 21 June until end July, kids
visiting Groot Constantia can join in the fun by roaming the estate in
search of clues in a treasure hunt – whilst parents enjoy the fruit of
the vine in front of the fireplace, or a delicious luncheon at any of
the two restaurants. In addition, a visit to the Manor House, with its
exhibition of fine furniture, paintings, textiles, ceramics, brass,
and copperware, gives an insight into the life of a well-to-do Cape
farming family of the late 18th to early 19th century. The Cloete
Cellar boasts an impressive collection of carriages, wine storage and
drinking vessels. The Museums are open daily from 10:00–17:00.
This exhibition covers various aspects of the
estate, past and present. Panels with aerial views of the farm explain
the Constantia Valley and layout of the farm. This is enhanced with a
scale model of the Groot Constantia estate.
There are panel displays of the Khoe-San people, the first inhabitants
of the Cape, and a fascinating and informative timeline inter-relating
information on Groot Constantia with South Africa. There are also
panels on the botany of Constantia Valley and the famous oak trees on
the farm. The importance of wine farming in the early Cape economy and
the role of Groot Constantia as the earliest wine farm in South Africa
is traced.
A particular focus of the exhibition is rural slavery and the
basis it provided for wine farming at the Cape. For the very first
time there is an attempt to trace the lives of Groot Constantia’s
slave men and women. The challenge in trying to discern the voices of
individual slaves at the Cape is that the historical record is largely
lacking. As members of the working classes of the Colony at that time,
their specific histories were not documented. Instead, the presence of
slaves at Groot Constantia, as elsewhere on Cape farms, is refracted
through lists of slave owners’ possessions, estate transfer documents
and court cases. The new exhibition includes slaves’ work on the farm
- from labourer to cellar master to musician – their places of origin,
many of their names and their medical treatment. Reference is made to
a planned slave escape of 1712 when some 23 slaves led by an Eastern
exile priest, Santrij from Java, gathered at Groot Constantia where
Santrij lived. A visual highlight is a late 18th century drawing of a
slave depicted with Groot Constantia’s owner, Hendrik Cloete senior.
The slave, who may be the owner’s personal attendant, and named only
Jacob in the historical record, supports Cloete’s long clay pipe – a
depiction indicative of the indulgence demanded by slave owners at the
time. For more information about the slave history of Groot
Constantia, visit the Heritage of Slavery in South Africa
website.
Other panels deal with the farm’s owners and the famous ‘Vin de
Constance’. Noted here is that Napoleon was supplied with Constantia
wine while in exile on St Helena and that King Louis Philippe of
France and Frederick the Great of Prussia ordered quantities of
Constantia wine. There are further panels on the architectural
development of the farm over the 300 years of its existence. Alfred de
Pass, benefactor of the Groot Constantia house museum, whose donation
of furnishings and decorative arts, forms the nucleus of the
exhibition in the house, is also commemorated.
Contact person at Iziko Museums Social
History Department
Thijs van der Merwe
Email
tvandermerwe@iziko.org.za
Telephone: 021 464 1261 |
