Johannesburg — TAUNG SKULL EXHIBITION William Cullen Library, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg (011) 717-1947

FOR the first time in 2-million years, the Taung child's skull is being exhibited publicly.

This tiny fossil, generally accepted as the skull of a four-yearold hominid, was discovered in 1924 by Raymond Dart, who identified it as the first Australopithecus Africanus the missing link in the evolutionary chain between man and ape revolutionising palaeoanthropology.

This priceless item is displayed in a secure room at Wits University's William Cullen Library with several other treasures from the university's collection in an exhibition curated to coincide with the world summit.

On an open table is a collection of 1980s "struggle" posters, mainly from the United Democratic Front, the front organisation for the then-banned ANC.

Flanking the skull are pages from Sol Plaatje's diary, written by the remarkable scholar during the siege of Mafeking during the Anglo-Boer War, and notes made by Nelson Mandela for his trial in 1964. His famous remarks about freedom appear as a doubleasterisked footnote: "I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities. It is an ideal which I hope to live for and to achieve. But if needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die."

Surrounding the exhibition is a permanent collection of rare and early books charting the path of European explorers in Africa. Exquisitely tooled leather and fine botanical drawings illustrate the exploits of hunters and natural historians.

Today is the last opportunity to visit the exhibition. Tours are on the hour from 10am to 2pm.