Visit The Mandela Capture Site
Visitor Experience
The Visitor Centre and Mandela sculpture at the Nelson Mandela Capture Site are moving and informative experiences for all visitors - young and old, South African and international. Find out what to expect and plan a visit to take in the chapters of history that shaped Mandela’s life story – and a nation.
The Nelson Mandela Capture Site Visitor Centre, funded by the KwaZulu-Natal Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Department, opened to the public in December 2019. The immersive exhibition includes a 360-degree surround film, a dazzling display of historical artefacts and photographs, as well as a replica of the Austin Westminster that Nelson Mandela was driving when he was arrested along R103 on 5 August 1962. The Visitor Centre features regular temporary exhibitions. These exhibitions provide in-depth and thought-provoking insights, detailing different people and events in order to provide a deeper understanding of South African history.
A Monument To This Powerful Moment In History
Located in the province of KwaZulu-Natal, the exhibition focuses on struggles in this part of the country. Starting with the Bambatha Rebellion of 1906, it traces decades of resistance to colonial rule and apartheid, culminating in the mass mobilisation of the 1980s. In this way, the place of Mandela’s capture becomes a gateway to understanding the history of this province and its contribution to the freedom of all South Africans. The exhibition goes on to cover Mandela’s release, the building of a new nation, his presidential appointment, and his legacy.
The Visitor Centre is complemented by a ‘Long Walk to Freedom’ through the landscaped garden to view the iconic sculpture entitled ‘Release’, featuring 50 steel columns which dramatically come into focus as Mandela’s face from a particular vantage point.
Expand your knowledge by exploring the Visitor Centre – and end your tour with the ‘Long Walk To Freedom’ and ‘Release’ Mandela Sculpture.
Virtual Tours
Explore the Nelson Mandela Capture site through a virtual tour of the Visitor Centre and sculpture. The tour includes video, high-quality graphics, and content about the Capture Site.
Donate to the Nelson Mandela Capture Site
In a typical month, the Capture Site employs over 35 staff, welcomes around 500 visitors per day, hosts numerous school groups and education programmes, trains 25 young adults for the hospitality and tourism industry, and supports local businesses through construction and upgrade projects. Your contributions through ticket sales, memberships, donations, and purchases from our shop help keep all this going. Please consider making a contribution by pre-buying a ticket or making a donation.
*International Credit Cards Accepted
Long Walk To Freedom and Release
Long Walk to Freedom
To see the sculpture, visitors walk from the Visitor Centre along a path representing ‘the Long Walk to Freedom’ towards the sculpture culminating at the viewing point where the steel columns come into focus as Nelson Mandela’s face at a point 30 metres from the sculpture.
When History Becomes Heritage
Mandela Capture Site Sculpture
Marco Cianfanelli and Jeremy Rose (Mashabane Rose Architects) originally collaborated in 2007 with the view to making an interactive sculpture that incorporated the image of Nelson Mandela. Culture Mechanics – a specialist museum, exhibition, design, and art consultancy – curated the project and commissioned the installation.
The sculpture acknowledging the 50th anniversary of the capture of Nelson Mandela, consists of 50 laser cut steel columns between 6 and 9.5 metres high along a thirty-metre length. The sculpture can be seen from the road as a forest of steel poles. From the Visitor Centre, visitors walk the ‘Long Walk to Freedom’ path, with Mandela’s image gradually coming into focus. The 50 linear vertical steel columns line up 30 metres from the sculpture on the path, creating the illusion of a flat, two-dimensional image that magically recreates Madiba’s portrait, metaphorically announcing his return to the site of his disappearance from world view.
Walking close towards and through the sculpture, the portrait image dissolves back into the forest of 50 columns. When visitors look across the road they will see the original memorial. The sculpture eloquently becomes part of the surrounding landscape and visually shifts throughout the day – affected by the changing light and atmosphere behind and around it.
This is the largest artwork of its kind in South Africa and has instantly become an international symbol of the iconic status of Mandela.
Stop Off for Refreshments
Elefanto Cafe
A visit to the Nelson Mandela Capture Site Visitor Centre and sculpture takes a few hours. We invite you to start your visit or round off your tour with a cup of freshly-brewed coffee, refreshments, snacks, or light meals from the on-site Elefanto Cafe. This is the ideal spot for reflection and to meet up with your friends following a tour.
Menu available on request.
Plan Your Visit
