Swartkrans is located about 1.5 km west of the Sterkfontein Caves and, like Sterkfontein, is owned by the University of the Witwatersrand. Dr. Robert Broom and his assistant John Robinson carried out the first scientific work on fossils from this site. Because of financial difficulties, this work was halted towards the end of 1949. For the next two years, lime miners worked the site, blasting out much of the limestone associated with fossils. These destructive activities continued until 1951. After Dr Robert Broom died in 1951, Robinson continued working at Swartkrans, stopping in 1953. From the late 1960s, Dr. Bob Brain undertook a long-term project at the site spanning 25 years. The first years of his work involved removing the rubble left behind by the lime miners. In the process of this work, a wealth of fossils came to light.

To date, more than 200 hominin specimens, mostly attributable to Australopithecus (Paranthropus) robustus, have been discovered at Swartkrans. In addition, numerous animal remains and stone and bone tools have been recovered from the site. Swartkrans is the second richest site for early stone tools (1.7 to 1.1 million years old) and the richest site for bone tools associated with early Pleistocene hominins.

Apart from the robust hominins, Swartkrans was also the first site in Africa to yield remains of early Homo, notably Homo ergaster, which is thought to have given rise to Homo sapiens. Homo ergaster is believed to have manufactured the stone tools found at Swartkrans and there is evidence that they controlled fire 1.0 million years ago, especially for warmth or protection from carnivores. Previous discoveries elsewhere in the world that proved the controlled use of fire by humans dated back only 500 000 years.

Hominin and faunal specimens from Swartkrans are housed at the Transvaal Museum (Northern Flagship Institution).