FILM
An abandoned diamond mining town in Namibia [S5 – Eps. 42]
EDITORIAL SUMMARY
This Season 5 episode turns from the wider Southern Africa motorcycle journey to Kolmanskoppe, an abandoned diamond-mining town in Namibia. Its focus is the settlement’s history and the continuing importance of diamond mining in Namibia and South Africa.
About this film
Rather than centring on a stretch of road, the episode follows Itchy Boots exploring Kolmanskoppe and learning about the diamond history associated with the town. The account looks back to events from a century earlier, then connects that history with diamond mining that continues in Namibia and South Africa. This makes the film a place-focused interlude within Season 5 – Southern Africa: a motorcycle-travel series whose wider journey provides the context for the visit. The historical subject is presented through the creator’s exploration of the abandoned town, with the emphasis on what happened there and how the diamond industry remains part of the region’s present.
The journey
The setting is Kolmanskoppe, in Namibia. The episode’s travel focus is a visit to the ghost town, where the exploration opens onto a broader account of diamond mining. It places the town’s past, described in relation to events a century ago, alongside the continuing industry in Namibia and South Africa. The result is a pause in the larger Southern Africa journey that attends to the history of a particular place rather than presenting a route through multiple destinations. The film’s subject remains grounded in this contrast between an abandoned mining town and diamond mining that is still taking place in the two countries.
What to expect
- An exploration of the abandoned town of Kolmanskoppe.
- Historical context about diamond mining there a century ago.
- A connection between that history and ongoing mining in Namibia and South Africa.
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