Chancellor House

Johannesburg


It was in this three-storey building that, in the 1950s, Nelson Mandela and Oliver Tambo set up South Africa's first black-owned law firm. After a 2012 renovation, it features a public 'outside museum' that can be visited any time of the day or night. Photos and panels displayed in the windows give a vivid insight into Mandela's and Tambo's lives.

Opposite is the 5m-tall painted steel sculpture Shadow Boxing by Marco Cianfanelli, based on Bob Gasini's famous photo of Mandela sparring in 1952.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Johannesburg attractions

1. Shadow Boxing Sculpture

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Based on Bob Gasini's famous photo of Mandela shadow boxing in 1952, this 5m-tall painted steel sculpture by Jo'burg artist Marco Cianfanelli stands…

2. Walter and Albertina Sisulu Statue

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By Jo'burg artist Marina Walsh, this charming statue depicts larger-than-life versions of the Sisulus in their elder years, seated and facing each other…

3. Anglo American Head Office

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4. Sci-Bono Discovery Centre

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5. Main St Pedestrian Mall

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Honouring Jo'burg's history of mining are a series of information panels, statues and artifacts lining the partly pedestrianised mall at the western end…

6. Turbine Hall

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An icon of the city's rebirth, this massive power station was refurbished in 2007 and now houses the impressive new headquarters of AngloGold Ashanti as…

7. Johannesburg Public Library

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At every desk in this handsome multilevel library (first opened in 1935 and designed by John Perry in an Italianate style) sit people reading and working…

8. Workers’ Museum

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This important museum is in the restored Electricity Department’s compound, which was built in 1910 for 300-plus municipal workers and has been declared a…