Impala Stampede was commissioned by the Oppenheimer family and donated by Mr Harry Oppenheimer to the City of Johannesburg on 16 July 1960, in memory of his father Sir Ernest Oppenheimer.
The sculpture was originally located in the Oppenheimer Park behind the Rissik Street Post Office. However, after the heads and legs of some of the impalas were sawn off by vandals in 1999 the sculptors restored the sculpture and it was relocated to the Main Street precinct and was unveiled on 21 May 2002 by Mrs Bridget Oppenheimer.
The Anglo-American offices that now look over the Impalas are a fine example of art deco architecture in Johannesburg. Anglo-American is one of the oldest and largest mining companies in South Africa, started by Ernest Oppenheimer in 1917.
Situated in front of the Anglo American Building, the ‘metal” life-size sculpture of 17 impala in a graceful arch over a fountain. The fountain and architectural friezes associated with the Anglo American building show scenes of wild-life and a mythologised marine life.
There is a plaque with an inscription on the ground which says “Impala Stampede”
Impala Stampede was commissioned by the Oppenheimer family and donated by Mr Harry Oppenheimer to the City of Johannesburg on 16 July 1960, in memory of his father Sir Ernest Oppenheimer.
The sculpture was originally located in the Oppenheimer Park behind the Rissik Street Post Office. However, after the heads and legs of some of the impalas were sawn off by vandals in 1999 the sculptors restored the sculpture and it was relocated to the Main Street precinct and was unveiled on 21 May 2002 by Mrs Bridget Oppenheimer.
The Anglo-American offices that now look over the Impalas are a fine example of art deco architecture in Johannesburg. Anglo-American is one of the oldest and largest mining companies in South Africa, started by Ernest Oppenheimer in 1917.
A culmination of research gathered over many years, the Online Johannesburg Heritage Register is being launched on Nelson Mandela Day 18 July 2025.
Among the many heritage sites featured is Chancellor House, the downtown offices of Mandela and Tambo Attorneys in the 1950s. After having been vacant and shuttered for more than a decade, this iconic building is being revived and brought to life once again as offices for the Community Development Department, which oversees the City’s Arts, Culture & Heritage Services.
