Property

131-year-old Cape Town landmark restored to its former glory

Bianke Neethling • 14 November 2025

The refurbishment of the Time Ball Tower at the V&A Waterfront has been completed, which the restoration aimed at returning the tower to its 19th-century glory.

The Time Ball Tower is considered a Cape Town maritime landmark and is located next to the Dock House Boutique Hotel.

The historic landmark was erected in 1894 to ensure safe passage for incoming ships and now stands as a revived symbol of the city’s rich maritime history.

The tower once played a vital role in maritime navigation before the digital age of radio and Global Positioning Systems (GPS)

Each day at 12:55, the time ball mechanism in the tower would be manually cranked, and the ball dropped precisely five minutes later at 13:00, triggered electronically by a signal from the South African Astronomical Observatory.

“This allowed navigators on ships in Table Bay to accurately reset their chronometers to correctly calculate longitude at sea and ensure safe navigation,” said V&A Waterfront Harbour Master Steven Bentley.

The restoration project was initiated following a conversation between Cape Town Executive Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis and V&A Waterfront CEO David Green about safeguarding the city’s history.

On Friday, 12 November, Hill-Lewis and Green unveiled the restored Time Ball Tower, reopening the landmark to the public.

“By preserving our maritime heritage, we symbolise Cape Town’s longstanding role as a global maritime hub and the V&A Waterfront’s continued function as one of the world’s oldest working harbours,” Green said.

“We are proud that the Time Ball Tower will add depth to our city’s tourism and cultural offering by bringing this important piece of history back to life.”

The Cape’s original time ball was installed in 1836 on the mast of the main Royal Observatory building.

However, by the mid-19th century, the expansion of the settlement and the development of the Table Bay Docks had obscured its visibility from the harbour.

By this time, a second time ball was installed on Signal Hill, but with growing volumes of maritime trade, there was a need for a time-signalling device within the harbour itself.

The Time Ball Tower remained operational for over 40 years and was declared a national monument in 1982.

Restoring the tower was a collaboration between MNA Engineering & Supplies, Thorold Architects, Henry Fagan Consulting Engineers & Project Managers, and Professor George Vicatos.

Vicatos, who recreated the original technical drawings for the Time Ball Tower during its 1997 restoration, oversaw the recent refurbishment and reassembly of the 1,200 kg fibreglass time ball.

“Despite significant degradation, around 80% of the parts simply needed machining and slight modification,” MNA Engineering Supplies’ Mogamad Samuels said.

“Components that were beyond repair or no longer available were carefully replaced with newly-manufactured parts.”

Protective bellows have also been fitted to the tower to prevent the ingress of water that previously caused corrosion.

“The V&A Waterfront will conduct ongoing maintenance to ensure it remains operational into the future,” Green said.

Following its reopening, the landmark will operate as it originally did, as it will be manually cranked at 12:55 with the ball dropping at 13:00.

The Time Ball will operate twice a week, on Mondays and Thursdays. “This adds a second time‑signalling device to Cape Town’s landscape, with the Noon Gun serving as an audible signal and the Time Ball Tower providing a visual one”, Green said.