This excellent museum includes the spring from which Bartholomeu Dias watered the postal tree, the 1786 Dutch East India Company (Vereenigde Oost-Indische Compagnie; VOC) granary, a shell museum (with some interesting aquarium tanks) and a local history museum. The highlight of the complex is the replica of the caravel that Dias used on his 1488 voyage of discovery (adult/child R20/5). Its small size brings home the extraordinary skill and courage of the early explorers.
The replica was built in Portugal and sailed to Mossel Bay in 1988 to commemorate the 500th anniversary of Dias’ trip.
