The earliest collections date back to 1895 but the bulk of material was accessioned prior to 1961, when the first professional archaeologist was appointed, mainly as a result of excavations of amateur archaeologists as well as donations from the public. The department contains important collections from the Wilton and Howieson's Poort type localities. The department also has a small but valuable collection of Roman, Greek and Egyptian material - the Egyptian mateial includes one of only three mummies in South Africa. Information relating to the collections is available on file and cards index. These data are at present being captured onto a computer database.

Staff are also involved in ongoing research in the Eastern Cape Region and elsewhere. Dr Johan Binneman is actively involved in researching the Later Stone Age (Holocene) history of the region as well as initiating a project into the settlement of the first black farmers in the region. Dr Lita Webley has a particular interest in the archaeology of pastoralist peoples (Khoikhoi) in Namaqualand (Western Cape Region) and is also involved in historical archaeology and educational programmes. Both officers visit and record rock art sites in the region when time permits. An increasing amount of time is being spent on contract archaeological work.

Both offices have published a number of research publications.