Our Building Heritage: An Illustrated History

This large book traces the development of the building industry in South Africa, starting with the simple dwellings erected in the Cape by the nomadic Khoisan people, to the advanced shopping complexes built around the urban centres of Johannesburg and Cape Town. Many curious facts about builders, specialist contractors and sub-contractors have been unearthed during the course of compilation and these include the tale of Piet Retief, the great Voortrekker leader and Hero of Blood River, who started out his working life in South Africa as a builder in Grahamstown and was notoriously unsuccessful, being sued for erected shoddy building on numerous occasions. 312 pages, index, bibliography. A large book with dust jacket in splendid condition.