The Waalburg building stands out on Wale Street with its heavy, mid-twentieth-century stone facade and clean, geometric lines. Completed in nineteen fifty-five, it replaced older structures to provide modern office and residential space in…
City Bowl Art Deco
This short walk through the city center highlights Cape Town's impressive collection of 1930s Art Deco architecture hiding in plain sight. You will see beautiful geometric facades, ornate brass grilles, and the elegant lobbies of historic office buildings.
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1. Waalburg building
2. Newspaper House
Newspaper House on St George’s Mall wears a facade of geometric stone carvings that distinguish it from the neighboring glass towers. Built in nineteen thirty-six, the structure served as the headquarters for the Cape Times. Inside those…
3. Namaqua House Apartments
The Namaqua House Apartments on Greenmarket Square stand out for the decorative cast-iron balconies that wrap around the building’s facade. Built in nineteen oh five, this structure replaced the original Namaqua House, a hotel that served…
4. 403 Market House
The Old Town House in Greenmarket Square stands out with its gabled Dutch architecture and the distinctive, weathered sandstone facade that has faced the square since seventeen fifty-five. It served as the city’s original burgher watch…
5. Mullers Optometrists Longmarket Street
Mullers Optometrists features a classic, curved glass storefront that has anchored the corner of Longmarket and Parliament Streets since eighteen eighty-eight. While many businesses in central Cape Town have modernized their facades, this…
6. Mutual Heights
The Mutual Heights building features a towering gray facade decorated with intricate, gold-leafed figures of native animals and figures representing the diverse population of the region. Originally built in nineteen thirty-nine as the…