Johannesburg is the most populous city in South Africa with 4,803,262 people, and is classified as a megacity; it is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. It is the provincial capital and largest city of Gauteng, which is the wealthiest province in South Africa. Johannesburg is the seat of the Constitutional Court, the highest court in South Africa. Most of the major South African companies and banks have their head offices in Johannesburg. The city is located within the mineral-rich Witwatersrand hills, the epicentre of the international-scale mineral, gold and (specifically) diamond trade.
The Hillbrow Tower is a tall tower located in the suburb of Hillbrow in Johannesburg, South Africa. At 269 m (883 ft), it was the tallest structure and tower in Africa for 50 years, until it was surpassed in 2021 by the 393.8 m (1,292 ft) Iconic Tower in Egypt's New Administrative Capital. For seven years it was also the tallest structure in the Southern Hemisphere until 1978, when surpassed by the 270 m Mount Isa Chimney in Queensland, Australia. It remains the tallest telecommunications tower in Africa, and the tallest structure in sub-Saharan Africa. Construction of the tower began in June 1968 and was completed three years later, in April 1971. Construction cost 2 million rand. The tower was initially known as the JG Strijdom Tower, after JG (Hans) Strijdom, South African Prime Minister from 1954 to 1958. On 31 May 2005 it was renamed the Telkom Joburg Tower.
Sandton City is a large shopping centre situated in Sandton, Johannesburg, South Africa. It was built and owned by property development company Rapp and Maister, in partnership with brothers Hilliard and Eli Leibowitz, and was later taken over by Liberty Life.
The Sentech Tower, previously named the Albert Hertzog Tower and commonly known as the Brixton Tower, is a 237-metre-high (778 ft) concrete television tower in the Brixton suburb of Johannesburg, South Africa, near the top of the Brixton Ridge. It is a well-known and easily identifiable landmark in the city, alongside its "architectural cousin", the Hillbrow Tower. Although always intended for both radio and television transmission, it carried only FM radio transmissions until the 1970s.
11 Diagonal Street is an office tower in Johannesburg, South Africa. It was built in 1983 to a height of 80 metres. It is designed to look like a diamond as it reflects different views of the Central Business District from each angle of the building.
Ponte City is a skyscraper in the Berea suburb of Johannesburg, South Africa, just next to Hillbrow. It was built in 1975 to a height of 173 m (567.6 ft), making it the tallest residential skyscraper in Africa. The 55-storey building is cylindrical, with an open centre allowing additional light into the apartments. The centre space is known as "the core" and rises above an uneven rock floor. When built, Ponte City was seen as an extremely desirable address due to its location and views over Johannesburg, but it became infamous for its crime and poor maintenance in the late 1980s to 1990s. It has since been refurbished into a safe property. The neon sign on top of the building is the largest sign in the Southern Hemisphere. It currently went under changes in 2023 rebranding it to VodaPay, a digital wallet system. Before it though, it was covered by South African Network Vodacom from. Prior to 2000, it advertised for The Coca-Cola Company.
Trust Bank Building is a skyscraper in the Central Business District of Johannesburg, South Africa. It was built in 1970 to a height of 140 metres. The building is the former head office of Trust Bank of South Africa, and as such has one of the largest bank vaults in South Africa. The building was sold in February 2003 for Rand 6.4 million . Like most skyscrapers in Johannesburg the height is 140m which is the same height as KwaDukuza eGoli Hotel, Michelangelo Towers, ABSA Tower and Standard Bank Centre which are all 140m tall.
The Standard Bank Centre is a skyscraper in Johannesburg, South Africa. It is located at the corner of 27 Simmonds Street and 78 Fox Street in the Central Business District of the city. Construction of the building started in 1966 and was completed in 1968. It is 139 m (456 ft) tall. It was also home to Standard Bank, until the company moved to a new site in 1990.
The Schlesinger Building, also known as Wesbank Centre or Sanlam Centre, is a skyscraper in Braamfontein, Johannesburg, South Africa. It was built in 1965 to a height of 110 metres (360 ft). It has 21 floors. The building is named for John Schlesinger, a Johannesburg businessman who was also one of the first major art collectors in the city.
Logistics House is an office tower in Braamfontein, Johannesburg, South Africa. It was built in 1974 to a height of 95 metres (312 ft). It has 25 floors. The building is the former headquarters of South African Airways.
The Eskom Centre is a office tower in the Central Business District of Johannesburg, South Africa. It was built in 1955 to a height of 61 metres. The building was the headquarters of Eskom from 1958 until the company relocated to Sandton in the mid-1980s. The building was the tallest building in Johannesburg when it was finished in 1958. The building was so high compared to other buildings in Johannesburg that it was the only one that could be seen from the patch of veld that is now called Kensington B.
The Amalgamated Banks of South Africa Tower is an office skyscraper in the Central Business District of Johannesburg, South Africa. It is 31 storeys tall. It is also the headquarters of Absa Group Limited.
Radiopark is a skyscraper in Auckland Park, Johannesburg, South Africa. It is thirty stories tall and is the headquarters of the South African Broadcasting Corporation.
The Johannesburg Central Business District, commonly called Johannesburg CBD, is one of the main business centres of Johannesburg, South Africa. It is the densest collection of skyscrapers in Africa, however, due to white flight and urban blight, many of the buildings are unoccupied as tenants have left for more secure locations in the Northern Suburbs, in particular Sandton and Rosebank. There are significant movements to revive the area.
Johannesburg is the capital of the Gauteng province and the financial hub of South Africa. Founded in 1886, the city is located in the Witwatersrand region, which has vast gold deposits. The town experienced rapid growth as the gold deposits were exploited, and is now South Africa's largest urban centre. As a result, the Johannesburg area has a wide variety of architecture, from early Art Nouveau to Postmodern buildings. Hillbrow, for example, contains many buildings constructed since the 1950s, including the Hillbrow Tower.
Astor Mansions is an Art Deco style building that was designed by architects Obel & Obel in 1931 and completed in 1932. The building was residential with street level retail and first floor professional office space. It was built to the maximum height of 140 feet permitted by the City Council. The building had a short lived stint as the tallest building in Johannesburg until the completion of the Ansteys Building in 1935.
