Where was King Solomon’s Mines filmed? Stewart Granger, Richard Chamberlain, and Patrick Swayze all hunted diamonds. Here’s every real filming location.
I remember cracking open H. Rider Haggard’s King Solomon’s Mines as a teenager and getting completely hooked.
Allan Quatermain wasn’t some muscle-bound hero – just a wiry, self-deprecating elephant hunter who claimed to be a coward while walking into certain death. I loved every page of it.
Indiana Jones? Please. Quatermain was hacking through jungles and hunting lost diamonds decades before the fedora ever showed up.
The 1885 novel follows Quatermain (played on screen by everyone from Cedric Hardwicke to Sean Connery) across Africa in search of a lost diamond mine. The 1950 MGM version starred Stewart Granger and Deborah Kerr.
The 1985 cult classic paired Richard Chamberlain with Sharon Stone in a gleefully over-the-top action comedy. Expect elephants, caves, and zero historical accuracy.
From the black-and-white British romp of 1937 to Chamberlain’s gloriously goofy mullet-adventure, these films have dragged casts and crews across three continents – often swapping African sun for a New Mexico cave and calling it a day.
Let’s safari through the real filming spots, complete with body doubles, stampeding animals, and one very famous underground room.
Table of Contents
💎 King Solomon’s Mines Filming Locations
From London soundstages to Zimbabwean veld, here’s where each version of Quatermain’s hunt actually went down.
🌄 King Solomon’s Mines (1937) – The One Where the Cast Stayed Home
Here’s a fun fact to file under “they don’t make ’em like this anymore”: Cedric Hardwicke, playing the great white hunter Allan Quatermain, never once set foot on African soil. Not for a single second.
While the 1937 British production wanted those sweeping Drakensberg Mountains on screen, the studio also wanted its star sipping tea in London. Paul Robeson, playing Umbopa, also stayed home – his singing voice traveled farther than his suitcase.
So they did what any self-respecting low-budget adventure film would do: they hired body doubles, pointed them at South Africa‘s cliffs, and hoped no one looked too closely at the long shots.
The “African wilderness” was mostly Shepherd’s Bush Studios with a lot of potted ferns and hopeful lighting. Meanwhile, the real second unit crew in KwaZulu-Natal battled actual heat, bugs, and terrain while Hardwicke complained about drafty soundstages.
The result is a film that feels half epic travelogue, half British stage play. And honestly? That accidental charm is exactly why fans still dig it up today.
What was filmed here:
- Otto’s Bluff & Drakensberg Mountains, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa: Vast African landscapes, no principal actors.
- Shepherd’s Bush Studios, London, UK: Interior studio scenes with fake rocks.
🦒 King Solomon’s Mines (1950) – The Technicolor Safari Everyone Remembers
Let’s get one thing straight: when Stewart Granger and Deborah Kerr ran from that stampede, they were genuinely terrified. No green screens. No CGI herds magically rendered by tired animators.
MGM shipped cast and crew to actual Kenyan savannahs, pointed at actual wild animals, and said, “Act natural.” The result is thirty seconds of cinematic chaos, with the “acting” mostly Granger’s real sweating.
The production was so ambitious they split into three units: one in Uganda’s Murchison Falls, one in the Congo’s volcano country, and one – hilariously – in New Mexico.
Yes, the glittering diamond mines of King Solomon? That’s Carlsbad Caverns. The African desert? White Sands, New Mexico. Audiences never noticed because Technicolor made everything look equally hot and exhausting.
Deborah Kerr later admitted she spent half the shoot terrified of being trampled, while Granger complained about leeches. The giraffes, uncredited, stole every scene.
This version became the gold standard not because it was safe, but because it was gloriously, dangerously real. Also, the mine interior is literally a tourist attraction now – you can visit Slaughter Canyon Cave and pretend you’ve found Ophir.
What was filmed here:
- Murchison Falls, Uganda: Safari trek and waterfall backdrops.
- Hell’s Gate National Park, Kenya: Stampede sequences with real animals.
- Stanleyville & Volcano Country, DRC: Jungle expedition scenes.
- Carlsbad Caverns (Slaughter Canyon Cave), New Mexico: The underground mines.
- White Sands National Monument, New Mexico: Desert crossing shots.
👸🏽 King Solomon’s Treasure (1977) – The Frankenstein Monster of Quatermain Movies
King Solomon’s Treasure (1977) is the weirdest one: a Canadian-South African production that mashes King Solomon’s Mines & She into one gloriously unhinged movie.
John Colicos plays Quatermain, David McCallum (NCIS’s Ducky) plays Sir Henry Curtis, and Patrick Macnee tags along as Captain Good. Britt Ekland shows up as a shimmering white queen ruling a lost city made of cardboard.
There are prehistoric monsters, giant crab attacks, a chimpanzee stealing alcohol, and a dove-shaped boat that flies. The 1986 Richard Chamberlain sequel? Variety called it a “remake” of this fever dream.
What was filmed here:
- Swaziland (now Eswatini): Jungle treks and wobbly lost city sets.
- South African studio interiors: The cardboard “Phoenician” city and throne room.
💦 King Solomon’s Mines (1985) & Lost City of Gold (1986) – The Cheesy, Glorious Cannon Films Duo
Here’s the thing about Cannon Films’ version: Richard Chamberlain’s Quatermain doesn’t hunt treasure so much as he stumbles through it while looking mildly confused and extremely tan.
King Solomon’s Mines (1985) is not your grandfather’s MGM epic. This is an Indiana Jones knockoff filmed on a budget that probably wouldn’t cover Granger’s catering bill. And yet – it’s magnificent.
Shot back-to-back in Zimbabwe to save every possible penny, the production used Victoria Falls so many times you’d think Africa only had one waterfall.
Sharon Stone, in her pre-Basic Instinct days, spends most of the first movie tied up, screaming, or both. She reportedly called the shoot “chaotic,” which is Hollywood for “the director yelled a lot and the fake cannibals kept laughing.”
The “cannibal” village scenes near Harare featured local Zimbabwean actors who were clearly having more fun than anyone. For the river caves, they retreated to a tiny studio in Culver City, California, where the “white water” was probably a hose.
The sequel, Allan Quatermain and the Lost City of Gold (1986), somehow got even weirder – more gold paint, more rubber masks, and a plot involving a white goddess.
Fans treasure these films not despite their flaws, but because every cheap matte painting screams “we tried, and we ran out of money.”
What was filmed here:
- Mashonaland region, Harare, Zimbabwe: Village chases and “cannibal” tribe scenes.
- Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe: Waterfall sequences (Lost City of Gold).
- Laird International Studio, Culver City, California: River-cave technical shots.
🌞 King Solomon’s Mines (2004 Miniseries) – Patrick Swayze Does Africa
By 2004, the bar for Allan Quatermain adaptations was… let’s say “on the floor.” Cannon had turned the great white hunter into a slapstick clown. MGM’s golden era was half a century old.
So, when Hallmark Entertainment decided to produce a two-part TV miniseries, they did something radical: they cast Patrick Swayze and actually took him to South Africa. No body doubles. No New Mexico pretending to be the veld.
Just Swayze, a rifle, and a whole lot of actual African sun. The result is hands-down the most sincere adaptation since 1950, even if Swayze occasionally looks like he’d rather be dancing with Baby.
Filmed on location across the South African veld – those endless grassy plains that swallow horizons for breakfast – the miniseries went for gritty realism over goofy rubber masks.
Swayze’s Quatermain is tired, competent, and quietly haunted, which is surprisingly close to H. Rider Haggard‘s original self-deprecating narrator. The budget was clearly Hallmark-level (read: modest), but the landscapes do all the heavy lifting.
Fans joke that the real star isn’t Swayze – it’s the veld, which gets more screen time than most supporting actors. Sadly, the miniseries aired opposite something shinier and faded quickly.
But for purists who want their Quatermain without canned laughter or cave-diving hoses, this is your hidden gem.
What was filmed here:
- South African veld: Long trek and expedition scenes.
💀 Allan Quatermain and the Temple of Skulls (2008) – The Asylum Strikes Again
You know those mockbuster people who made Snakes on a Train and Transmorphers? That’s The Asylum. And in 2008, they took aim at Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull and somehow landed on Allan Quatermain.
Shot in South Africa on a budget that wouldn’t buy a single whip from the real Indy movies, this film stars Sean Cameron Michael as a Quatermain who looks like he just wandered off a community theater stage.
The “temple” is a cave. The “skulls” are plastic. The plot involves a lost tribe, a prophecy, and the kind of acting you’d expect from a movie filmed in six days. Fans call it “so bad it’s almost fun,” but “almost” is doing a lot of heavy lifting.
What was filmed here:
- South African quarry and bush: Generic jungle paths and the plastic-skull temple.
🏹 Allan Quatermain and the Spear of Destiny (2023) – The Indie That Tried
Nearly fifteen years after The Asylum’s mess, someone decided Quatermain deserved another shot. This indie production stars David Hardware as an older, wearier Allan on the trail of you guessed it – the Spear of Destiny (aka the Holy Lance that pierced Christ’s side).
Shot on what appears to be a micro-budget in South African locations, the film tries for sincerity but lands somewhere between “fan film” and “community college project.” The cast is enthusiastic. The costumes are ambitious. The sound mixing will make you miss The Asylum.
For completionists only – and we mean only.
What was filmed here:
- South African veld (and small studio sets): Trekking montages and spear-related cave interiors.
❓ King Solomon’s FAQ – From Books to Betrayals
You’ve seen the locations, now dig into the real questions – like why Haggard killed his own hero and which film actually followed the book.
Is King Solomon’s Mines a true story?
Nope – but H. Rider Haggard borrowed heavily from real ruins (Great Zimbabwe) and real hunters (Frederick Selous).
Where is Ophir?
The Bible’s gold-shipping port. Haggard just moved it to Africa for plot reasons.
Did H. Rider Haggard write Allan Quatermain in order?
No! He killed Quatermain in the second book (1887), then wrote prequels for decades.
Who was the real Allan Quatermain?
Frederick Courtney Selous, a legendary British hunter who actually existed.
What’s the best order to read the books?
Start with King Solomon’s Mines (1885), then Allan Quatermain (1887), then the Zulu prequels.
Why did Victorians think Great Zimbabwe was built by white people?
Racism + refusal to believe Africans built stone cities. They blamed the Phoenicians or King Solomon (who was definitely not white).
Is there a crossover with She?
Yes! The She and Allan book teams Quatermain with Haggard’s immortal queen.
Which film is most faithful to the book?
The 1986 animated TV film, oddly enough.
Did Sean Connery play Quatermain?
Yes, in The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (2003), as a very grumpy old hunter.
Why are there so many comedic versions?
The 1985 film rode on the coattails of Raiders of the Lost Ark. Cannon Films leaned into camp.
Is The Librarian: Return to King Solomon’s Mines filmed on location in Africa?
No – this 2006 made-for-TV sequel (the second film in The Librarian trilogy) was mostly filmed on Los Angeles soundstages and California desert lots with stock footage of the Serengeti.
📺 Where to Watch King Solomon’s Mines
Streaming availability changes faster than Quatermain loses his shirt. Here’s where to watch them on Amazon Prime:
- ⇒ King Solomon’s Mines (all movies)
- ⇒ She (1935)
- ⇒ King Solomon’s Mines (1937) & ⇒ DVD
- ⇒ King Solomon’s Mines (1950) & ⇒ DVD
- ⇒ King Solomon’s Treasure (1977)
- ⇒ King Solomon’s Mines (1985) & ⇒ DVD
- ⇒ Allan Quatermain and the Lost City of Gold (1986)
- ⇒ King Solomon’s Mines (2004 Miniseries) & ⇒ DVD
- ⇒ King Solomon’s Mines animated (2021)
- ⇒ Allan Quatermain and the Spear of Destiny (2023)
- ⇒ Allan Quatermain and the Temple of Skulls (2008)
And there you have it – eight decades of cinematic treasure hunting, from London soundstages with potted ferns to Zimbabwean villages with rubber-masked cannibals, from Stewart Granger‘s very real stampede terror to Patrick Swayze‘s sincere veld-wandering.
Whether you prefer your Quatermain faithful and dusty or gloriously cheesy and mulleted, every version left its bootprints somewhere, proving that King Solomon’s real treasure was the film locations we visited along the way.
Disclaimer: This fan-created article is provided for informational and educational purposes only. All referenced titles, names, and related intellectual property are the property of their respective owners, and no copyright infringement is intended.
- Where Was King Solomon’s Mines Filmed? (All Versions) - April 24, 2026
- Where Was The Lost City Filmed? - April 22, 2026
- Where Were Romancing the Stone & Jewel of the Nile Filmed? - April 22, 2026
Discover more from Ahoy Matey Blog
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.