Planet Africa

Africa boasts the longest history of humankind and its ancestors on our planet. This is where human history began, and from here, new agricultural techniques and dietary strategies spread throughout the world. The exhibition features archaeological artifacts and combines them with contemporary African art. A colorful exhibition exploring the roots of our culture.

The themes of the exhibition

Huge murals featuring works by African street artists divide the tour into six themes:

1. Diversity – Natural Wealth Through Diversity
2. Incarnation – First Crucial Steps
3. Know-How – Agile Knowledge & Flexible Technology
4. Symbols & Images – Visualizing Knowledge
5. Raw Materials – Exchange, Trade, Power
6. New Perspectives – African Archaeology Today

Tall display cases containing texts, graphics, photos, and replicas are arranged throughout the exhibition. Monitors are also built into these cases, showing “cinematics”—animated educational videos—that illustrate the audio stations. Display cases with archaeological finds and 3D prints showcase the material culture.

From Research to Exhibition

The exhibition reflects the research findings of the “Entangled Africa” program of the German Research Foundation (DFG). It was conceived and organized primarily by the German Archaeological Institute (DAI) in collaboration with numerous partners.
The traveling exhibition will open at smac in the fall of 2025, following its debut in Berlin at the end of 2024 and a subsequent stop in Munich.

Curatorial Team

The exhibition project “Planet Africa: An Archaeological Journey Through Time” was developed by a team of curators led by Jörg Linstädter and Miriam Rotgänger of the Commission for Non-European Archaeology and Cultures at the German Archaeological Institute, with support from Wazi Apoh, University of Ghana, Accra-Legon, Gerd-Christian Weniger, Museum Consult, Matthias Wemhoff, and Ewa Dutkiewicz, Museum of Prehistory and Early History, and a large number of African and German archaeologists.

The exhibition is funded by the Federal Foreign Office of the Federal Republic of Germany, the German Research Foundation (DFG), and the State Museums of Berlin.