This research, which follows three months of fieldwork, is articulated on the basis of an observation -the Wildebeest Kuil rock art site (Northern Cape, South Africa) is rarely visited - and on the question:what contemporary issues revolve around the site? The construction of an interpretive centre on theedge of Wildebeest Kuil in 2001 was undertaken to provide economic and cultural support to two Sancommunities displaced and resettled at the same time near the site. Supported by new South Africanheritage management rules in 1999 and with a view to integrating the Xun and Khwe communities intothe management of the rock art site, the Wildebeest Kuil Rock Art Centre is an example ofcommunity-based tourism of archaeological heritage. However, the lack of tourism has not led to theestablishment of sustainability at Wildebeest Kuil. The author analyses at length the multiple causesof this marginality despite the good tourist numbers and the interest in cultural heritage in thedestination where the site is located (Kimberley). Throughout the dissertation, the community-basedapproach is questioned either directly, by analysing in depth the failure of this mode of managementat Wildebeest Kuil, or by proposing to shift the focus to the contemporary issues of the communitieson the site and to the cultural and political perspectives benefiting from the development of tourism atthe site. Therefore, this research proposes to observe the complexities surrounding the developmentof tourism by proposing a progressive conceptualisation and generalisation of the example ofWildebeest Kuil in the management of archaeological sites in South Africa. On the basis of a study ofvarious expectations on the site and mainly from qualitative data, this work proposes in fine tounderline the fundamentally social issues of archaeology in South Africa by using and adapting amethodology inherited from critical heritage studies