Pretoria City Hall, Municipal building in central Pretoria, South Africa
Pretoria City Hall is a granite building with an Italian-tiled roof and a 47-metre tower, standing at 432 Paul Kruger Street south of Church Square. Inside are a large auditorium, a square wood-panelled council chamber in the south wing, the Pretorius room in the north wing, and a public gallery on the second floor. Sculptures by Coert Steynberg and paintings of quotations by Jan Smuts are dispersed through the building.
Construction began in 1931 following a design competition, marking Pretoria's elevation to city status. The building was completed in 1935 and symbolized this administrative transformation.
Pretorius Square in front of the hall holds three statues: Marthinus Wessel Pretorius, who founded Pretoria in 1855 and named it after his father; the Voortrekker leader Andries Pretorius on horseback; and Chief Tshwane, added in 2006 by the Tshwane municipality named after him in 2000.
The building stands at 432 Paul Kruger Street, south of Church Square and across from the Transvaal Museum. Its main auditorium and interior halls have been closed to the public since 2016, so visits are limited to the exterior and Pretorius Square, with its fountains, lily pond and three statues.
The 47-metre tower holds a carillon of 32 bells given by George Heys, former owner of Melrose House. The building also contains an organ he donated, plus sculptures by Coert Steynberg and paintings illustrating quotations from General Jan Smuts.
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