Clarens is a small

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

situated in the foothills of the Maluti Mountains in the Free State province of

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

and nicknamed the "Jewel of the Eastern Free State". It was established in 1912 and named after the town of Clarens in

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

where exiled

Paul Kruger Stephanus Johannes Paulus Kruger (; 10 October 1825 – 14 July 1904), better known as Paul Kruger, was a South African politician. He was one of the dominant political and military figures in 19th-century South Africa, and State Preside ...

spent his last days. It is situated 336 km from

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu language, Zulu and Xhosa language, Xhosa: eGoli ) (colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, Jo'burg or "The City of Gold") is the most populous city in South Africa. With 5,538,596 people in the City of Johannesburg alon ...

, 284 km from

Bloemfontein Bloemfontein ( ; ), also known as Bloem, is the capital and the largest city of the Free State (province), Free State province in South Africa. It is often, and has been traditionally, referred to as the country's "judicial capital", alongsi ...

, and 389 km from

Durban Durban ( ; , from meaning "bay, lagoon") is the third-most populous city in South Africa, after Johannesburg and Cape Town, and the largest city in the Provinces of South Africa, province of KwaZulu-Natal. Situated on the east coast of South ...

History

A farm called "Leliehoek" (English: Lily Corner) was bought from Hermanus Steyn in 1910, and in 1911 Piet de Villiers sold his farm "Naauwpoort" (situated near the Titanic rock) to a company that planned to establish a village there. These two farms were divided into stands and sold for fifty pounds each. A commission was appointed in 1912 to finalise negotiations, and a decision was made to name the village "Clarens" in honour of President

’s influence in the area. This came about in the following way - during the Free State-Basotho War of 1865 - 1866, five burghers (citizens) of the Transvaal were murdered in the Eastern Free State, and as a result war was declared against the

Basotho The Sotho (), also known as the Basotho (), are a Sotho-Tswana ethnic group indigenous to Southern Africa. They primarily inhabit the regions of Lesotho, South Africa, Botswana and Namibia. The ancestors of the Sotho people are believed to h ...

leader, Moshoeshoe. Paul Kruger, together with a commando of burghers, defeated the Basotho at the Battle of Naauwpoortnek (near Titanic rock). President Kruger spent his last days as a voluntary exile in the attractive village of Clarens in

, and thus Clarens was named for this Swiss town. A monument was erected on the farm "Ararat" just outside Clarens, in honour of the five burghers murdered by the Basotho on 29 September 1865, during the siege of Naauwpoort. This monument was later moved to Clarens and placed in the central town square, where it stands to this day.

Tourism

Clarens is an artists' haven with many well-known artists either living in or frequenting the village, with many art galleries scattered around the village square and the town. The tranquil village ambience combined with scenic views and a mild climate has made Clarens a popular getaway for city dwellers from

, Bloemfontein and Durban, among other places. Clarens is known for its spectacular sandstone mountains and wonderful climate; it is one of the most picturesque spots in South Africa and has recently been acclaimed as the best Trout Fishing waters in South Africa. The

Golden Gate Highlands National Park Golden Gate Highlands National Park is located in Free State (South African province), Free State, South Africa, near the Lesotho border. It covers an area of . The park's most notable features are its golden, ochre, and orange-hued, deeply eros ...

with its sandstone formations and cliffs is 17 km from Clarens. Close to Clarens is the outlet from the

Lesotho Highlands Water Project The Lesotho Highlands Water Project (LHWP) is an ongoing water supply project with a hydropower component, developed in partnership between the governments of Lesotho and South Africa. It comprises a system of several large dams and tunnels t ...

that brings fresh water from

Lesotho Lesotho, formally the Kingdom of Lesotho and formerly known as Basutoland, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Entirely surrounded by South Africa, it is the largest of only three sovereign enclave and exclave, enclaves in the world, t ...

to feed into the As River (

Afrikaans Afrikaans is a West Germanic languages, West Germanic language spoken in South Africa, Namibia and to a lesser extent Botswana, Zambia, Zimbabwe and also Argentina where there is a group in Sarmiento, Chubut, Sarmiento that speaks the Pat ...

for "axle" because a wagon broke its axle when crossing, but has been mistakenly translated into English as "ash"), Liebenbergsvlei and Wilge Rivers feed into the

Vaal Dam The Vaal Dam in South Africa was constructed in 1938 and lies 77 km south of OR Tambo International Airport, Johannesburg. The lake behind the dam wall has a surface area of about and is 47 meters deep. The Vaal Dam lies on the Vaal River ...

. Water from the Vaal Dam is then abstracted, treated and pumped to the Rand Water supply area. Clarens is part of the scenic Highlands Route and is surrounded by mountains. The Rooiberge is the range encompassing the village, while further towards the southeast are the Maluti mountains in shades of purple and blue. All around are the sandstone cliffs with their multi-coloured layers - these horizontal strata are a characteristic feature of the area. Many homes in the Clarens Valley are made from or clad in sandstone. There are various establishments offering accommodation, including bed & breakfasts, self-catering, lodges, backpackers and farm guest houses in the surrounding area. Activities include: horse riding, abseiling, hiking, fly-fishing, fossil hunting, white-water rafting and golf. Live music is often performed on weekends.

Dinosaur fossils in Clarens

Large Jurassic dinosaurs lived in the eastern part of Free State about 200-million-years ago, when the giant southern super-continent,

Gondwana Gondwana ( ; ) was a large landmass, sometimes referred to as a supercontinent. The remnants of Gondwana make up around two-thirds of today's continental area, including South America, Africa, Antarctica, Australia (continent), Australia, Zea ...

, was still intact.

Discovery of fossils

From 12 January 2009 the remains of the largest dinosaurs ever to be found on South African soil were discovered in Clarens, a small town in

Free State (province) The Free State ( ; ; ; ; ), formerly known as the Orange Free State, is a Provinces of South Africa, province of South Africa. Its capital is Bloemfontein, which is also South Africa's judicial capital. Its historical origins lie in the Boer ...

. Dr Jonah Choineire, a senior researcher at the Evolutionary Studies Institute, said the remains of the large creature were found between the border of

and

just outside of Clarens. The remains were discovered at a construction site of the Ingula Pump and Storage Scheme, developed by

Eskom Eskom Hld SOC Ltd or Eskom is a South African electricity public utility. Eskom was established in 1923 as the Electricity Supply Commission (ESCOM) (). Eskom represents South Africa in the Southern African Power Pool. The utility is the larg ...

Holdings (Pty) Ltd. Gavin Anderson, the project archaeologist, together with Dr Gideon Groenewald, a geologist/palaeontologist, was requested to assist with the recording of fossil finds at the construction site. The sites of the excavations were inspected on a continuous basis during the excavation on 12 January 2009. Up to 2017, twenty five sites have been recorded, where fossilised bone were found. Remains of the vertebrates discovered were very broken and unfortunately disturbed by the excavations. A very well-preserved tusk of a plant-eating reptile, possibly a Dicynodon lacerticeps, was later recorded. The discovery of well-preserved bone fossils in the main quarry indicated that the interbedded mudstones in the region might have provided valuable information on the fauna of the ancient environment in that region.

Holdings donated a container for the storage of fossils on site. Temporary curation of fossils was supplied for that storage. The Gorgonopsid and other fossils recorded up to 31 January 2009 were then transported to the National Museum in

on 11 March 2009.

Types of dinosaurs discovered

*The Massospondylus Massospondylus reconstruction

The team discovered the remains of the largest dinosaur to walk in the southern parts of

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

, namely a 190-million-year-old fossilised egg of a

Massospondylus ''Massospondylus'' ( ) is a genus of sauropodomorph dinosaur from the Early Jurassic of southern Africa. It was described by Sir Richard Owen in 1854 from remains discovered in South Africa, and is thus one of the first dinosaurs to have been ...

dinosaur. This dinosaur lived in the Late Triassic and Early Jurassic, a period from about 230-million years ago to about 185-million years ago. The Massospondylus wandered about in great herds, migrating back and forth between what would, millions of years later, become Southern Africa and Russia, when the southern super-continent,

, was still intact. The rocks that were laid down during this period are called the Stormberg Group of rocks, and it is in rocks of the Stormberg Group that the fossils of Massospondylus and other dinosaurs were found. Massospondylus dinosaurs hatched from eggs not much larger than a hen’s egg, but grew into big creatures 5 to 6 metres long. They had large bodies, long necks and small heads, and long tails. *Antetonitrus Another species found was a 210-million-year-old sauropod named Antetonitrus. It was found in the Ladybrand District of the

. The dinosaurs dominated the region for about 120-million years until the end of the Cretaceous Period, 65-million years ago.

References

External links

Clarens Tourism Forum official website
What to do, where to stay, eat, drink in Clarens.

Local municipality website.
University of the Witwatersrand.

about ''Antetonitrus'' on th
Dinosaur Mailing List
written by Adam Yates. {{Authority control Populated places in the Dihlabeng Local Municipality Populated places established in 1912 1912 establishments in South Africa