The Barbican and Ansteys: Bird's Eye View - Liz at Lancaster Guest House

Posted on 18 October 202621 October 2026

The Barbican Penthouse: Rooms with a view

Thanks to Johannesburg Heritage Foundation I recently had a wonderful opportunity to visit to 2 iconic buildings in Jozi CBD (Central Business District).

The grand old lady restored to her former glory.

Barbican Johannesburg - view south from the penthouse — View from the penthouse to the south: the Barbican and the surrounding buildings provide a summary of Johannesburg’s history from the late 19th century through to the current day.

The Late 19th century under the Zuid Afrikaanse Republiek (later the Transvaal)

Looking south on the left is the Rissik Street Post Office. Built in 1897 under Paul Kruger and the Zuid Afrikaanse Republiek, (before the union of South Africa as a British Dominion in 1910), it is one of the oldest and most important heritage buildings. It became a national monument in 1978.

Standing empty since 1996, and despite various attempts at restoration, it has been allowed to fall into state of decay and dilapidation with most of the fittings having been vandalized or stolen. From the early gold rush days of Boer republics to the current mismanagement of heritage assets, this is but one narrative thread in Joburg’s history.

From ZAR pre-Union days to British rule

The Edwardian classicism of the 1914 City Hall on the right, declares the presence of a British identity. Home to the City Council once Johannesburg was declared a city in 1928, the building is now occupied by the Gauteng Provincial Legislature.

1930s – looking to America

Next in Joburg’s chronology comes the Barbican. Built between 1929 and 1931, this building signaled an era when post-Edwardian Englishness was passé, and Johannesburg was looking towards the modernity of America. With its stylistic mix of eclectic classicism and Art Deco it modelled itself on the skyscrapers of New York and Chicago. The jazzy new neon sign is testament to this influence.

And the new tenants, from Bridge Books on the ground floor, to David Tlale fashion on the 3 floors above, and then Michele Ciani‘s penthouse flat speak to the revitalization of the Jozi’s CBD in the 2020’s in a new hip urban way.

International Style Modernism under the new Afrikaner Nationalist state during the ’50s and ’60s

The two buildings straight ahead speak to the new International Style Modernism of the late 1950s and 1960s when South Africa, under Afrikaner nationalism, was positioning itself as a modern industrial state which could hold its own amongst Western countries. On the right is the modular style high rise Provincial Building Society building and on the left the NBS building in a more brutalist style.

A bird’s-eye history lesson – from the Boer republic and British Empire to Art Deco, apartheid-era modernism and today’s attempts to breathe new life into the CBD – all in one view.

Rooms with a view

Sitting room in the Barbican Penthouse — Sitting room in the Barbican penthouse

Penthouse roof top Barbican Johannesburg — Rooftop terrace of the penthouse in the Barbican Johannesburg

Ansteys: another iconic Jozi building

Ansteys building Johannesburg — Twenty storeys with its ziggurat formation, it is one of Jozi’s best known Art Deco buildings.

I also wrote about Ansteys in a previous post. This visit we took the lift straight to the 16th Floor before walking up the fire escape for our rooftop 360 degree view of Jozi Central.

View from Ansteys south over Johannesburg City — View south from the rooftop of Ansteys. The Barbican can be seen in front of the City Hall’s copper dome. The 39 storey Standard Bank Building (5 floors are underground) completed in 1970, can be seen in the mid-distance.

Standard Bank Building 1969 Fox Street Johannesburg — The construction technique of the Standard Bank building was revolutionary in its day as it was built from the top down. The central core was built, and the floors were suspended from the cantilevered arms with top floors added first, followed by each lower floor. Photo Courtesy Standard Bank

View South from Ansteys rooftop Jhannesburg — The red Absa sign identifies the building at the back left. The tall building is the old Carlton Centre (now Transnet) which for 46 years from 1973 until 2019 was the tallest building in Johannesburg (and even Africa) until the Leonardo was completed in 2019. The Carlton Hotel and the Kine Centre (in front of the Carlton Centre) complete the Carlton complex. The tall building (with yellow cloth signage on upper floors) is the Trust Bank building completed in 1970. It was also one of the tallest buildings in Africa until overtaken by the Carlton Centre in 1973.

Wonderful art deco detailing

The 1930s decoratove detaling in the foyer has mercifully survived. — Marvellous decorative detailing in the foyer has thankfully survived.

Art deco detailing Ansteys Johanneburg — Elegant flattened lines enhance the flowing stylized prance of the central buck in this beautiful Art Deco metalwork above the lift

Two iconic buildings, two rooftop views and over a century of Johannesburg history spread out below. It’s a useful reminder that the CBD isn’t simply a collection of old buildings: it is a city in layers, with each generation leaving its architectural and political mark. And from up here, those layers make a pretty impressive view.