Carlton Centre

Johannesburg, South Africa

Exterior only

Visible from the street; the inside is private.

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The Carlton Centre is a 50-storey skyscraper and shopping complex on Commissioner Street in central Johannesburg, designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill and completed in 1973. Rising 223 metres, it was Africa's tallest building for 46 years until 2019, and held the distinction of being the Southern Hemisphere's highest structure from its completion through 1977—the sole South African building ever to claim that rank. Built of concrete, the structure features unusually deep foundations of 5 metres in diameter extending 15 metres into bedrock 35 metres below street level, with over 46 percent of its floor area situated underground. The complex houses offices and retail, and connects via a subterranean shopping centre containing more than 180 shops to the adjacent Carlton Hotel.