Kolmanskop

The Abandonment

After World War One the diamond deposits became depleted. Richer fields were discovered further south near the Orange River. By 1954 Kolmanskop was empty. The desert, which had been held at bay for fifty years by constant maintenance, immediately began to reclaim it. Sand poured through doors and windows. Dunes built up against walls and then over them. Roofs collapsed under the weight. Today Kolmanskop's houses are half-filled with sand — you look through a window at a room where the sand line rises to chest height, the German furniture still visible above the dune.

The Photographs

Kolmanskop is one of the most photographed abandoned places on Earth, and it deserves to be. The combination of the intact German colonial architecture, the Namib Desert light, and the sand that has flowed into every room like a slow-motion flood creates images unlike anywhere else. Come at first light when the sun rakes across the sand at low angles and the colours are extraordinary. The photography permit is included in the entrance fee. Take your time.

Kolmanskop is 10km from Lüderitz. Tour permits are available at the site. Lüderitz itself, a strange German colonial town on the edge of the Namib Desert, is worth a day of exploration.