39 Peace Monuments Made from Old Weapons

Click here for peace monuments depicting "Swords Into Plowshares" (Isaiah 2:4 & Micah 4:3).
Click here for Anti-Bomb Monuments . | Click here for "Non-Violence" (aka "The Knotted Gun") by Carl Fredrik Reuterswärd.

N.B.: Throughout history, bells and cannons have had a special relationship. They are made from the same metals and often made in the same factory. Bells are usually made during times of peace and cannons during wartime. Both Asian and Western nations have melted down bells to make cannons. In times of peace, the melting down of surplus cannons to make bells is a powerful symbol of peace, even if the resulting bell is not actually named a "peace bell." Only a few examples are shown below. There are probably many more examples not identified as such on the internet.

Right click image to enlarge.

1876 - "Charrue de la Paix" / "Plow of Peace," Salle de l'Alabama / Hall of the Alabama, Hotel de Ville / City Hall,, Geneva (Switzerland). Made for the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (USA). /// "Offerte à la Ville et au peuple de Genève après avoir figuré comme symbole de paix à l'exposition de Paris en 1878. Elle fut confectionnée avec les sabres que des officiers américains avaient cédés lors d'un congrès pour la paix tenu en 1872 [sic] à Philadelphie par l' "Universal Peace Union." 1 of 40 monuments in "Peace Symbols" by Zonia Baber (1948), pp. 18-19.

1893 - Columbian Peace Plow, Chicago, Illinois (USA). WHERE IS THIS NOW? /// "Cut its first furrow on the platform of the Parliament of Religions. It was made for the Universal Peace Union [UPU] by [John] Deere & Co., Moline, Illinois." /// "In 1893, under the auspices of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR), a committee was appointed. Out of this committee a decision was made to create a PEACE PLOW from historical relics collected. The committee began to search for a plow-maker. Deere & Company jumped at the opportunity. Twenty-two thousand metal relics were represented in the original plow along with over 200 historical pieces of wood, each one with an interesting history." /// "In 1893, for the World's Fair in Chicago, Deere & Company commissioned [clutch inventor] Charles W. Borg [1861-19??] to create the 'Columbian Peace Plow,' which was a plowshare composed of historic swords. Some 22,000 metal relics went into the alloy from which the blade was cast. The beam & handles contained thousands of historic wood relics, some no bigger than a dime. The Columbian Peace Plow was exhibited at Bunker Hill [Massachusetts], in several states, on the battlefield of Runnymede [England], the Paris Exposition of 1900 [France] & at numerous world peace meetings in Europe. The plow was to have its home at the National Museum in Washington [Smithsonian Institution]." /// Lower image shows "[the] fabulous re-creation of such an important historical piece... This beautiful pewter replica of the original Columbian Peace Plow was painstakingly hand crafted using original documents obtained from the Deere & Company Archives and carefully placed in a specially fitted die-cut foam to ensure its safe arrival to your collection." 1 of 40 monuments in "Peace Symbols" by Zonia Baber (1948), pp. 24-25.

1894 - Statue of Mary Mother of Jesus, Haifa (Israel). Stands in front of the summer palace of Abdullah Pasha. Donated in 1894 by the Chilean government in recognition of the Carmelite monks who worked in Chile and spread the worship of the Holy Mary of Mount Carmel. The statue stands on a pole that casted by the broken guns fought by the citizens of Chile to achieve their independence from Spain in 1891." /// "Abdullah Pasha ruled Acre 1818-1831. In 1821, he destroyed the Carmelite Monastery and used its stones to build his summer home... Eventually the place was returned to the Carmelites who opened a hostel for pilgrims. During World War I, the place was hit badly, but at the end of the war, it was restored. In 1928, a new lighthouse was built under the supervision of the Spanish Honorary Consul, who was the patron of the monks and gave the place its name "Star of the Sea" (Latin: Stella Maris)... In 1939 during the British Mandate, the British hired the Summer Palace from the Carmelites to prepare against the Nazi invasion to Israel... The british set on top of the building a radar designed to detect illegal immigrants ships... Currently it is not possible to enter the building. The [Israeli] Navy holds the place, and the radar devices continue to scan the sea."

S T A T U E

March 13, 1904 - Cristo Redentor de los Andes / Christ of the Andes, Uspallata Pass, Andes Mountains (Argentina/Chile). Celebrates the Peace of King Edward VII [1841-1910] of England. The statue was cast from melted military armaments, and hauled thirteen thousand feet to the top of the mountain by the armies of both nations. The monument was on the cover of Time Magazine, December 17, 1928. 1 of 40 monuments in "Peace Symbols" by Zonia Baber (1948), pp. 24-25.

1910 - "Goddess of Victory and Peace," atop Pennsylvania State Memorial, Gettysburg, Pennsylvania (USA). "The pavilion is the largest monument on the Gettysburg Battlefield... In 1909-10, Samuel Murray created 'The Goddess of Victory and Peace' (Athena) from melted-down cannons."

1924 - "Maria Dolens" / "Grieving Virgin Mary", Miravalle Hill, Rovereto, Trento (Italy). Largest bell outside Russia & East Asia, and the largest sounding bell in the world. Built under the inspiration of a local priest from bronze obtained by fusing cannons used by all the armies which fought in World War I. The International University of Peoples’ Institutions for Peace (IUPIP) was established in 1993 in Rovereto by the Fondazione Opera Campana dei Caduti / Peace Bell Foundation. Two different bells, or changed mounting?

B E L L

1951 - "The Pummerin," North Tower, Stephansdom / St. Stephen's Cathedral, Wien/Vienna (Austria). "By the Turks guns originating from material & its casting in the early days of the Second Republic, it is also a symbol of peace, freedom and the country as a gift from the province of Upper Austria for the St. Stephen's Cathedral was destroyed in World War II as a symbol of the reconstruction [Google translation]." Called "The Voice of Austria." At 21,383 kg, the third largest bell in Western & Central Europe, after St. Petersglocke in Cologne Cathedral (24.000 kg) and Maria Dolens (qv) in Rovereto, Italy (23.000 kg).

Date? - Monumento "La Destruccion de las Armas," Parque la Paz / Peace Park, San Jose (Costa Rica). "Peace Park monument is surrounded with broken weapons. Costa Rica abolished their army in 1948."

1968 - St. Francis of the Guns," Science Building, City College of San Francisco, San Francisco, California (USA). After the 1968 shootings of Bobby Kennedy & Martin Luther King Jr, San Francisco's Mayor Joseph Alioto led a voluntary gun turn-in program that accumulated a conveniently symbolic 1,968 weapons. Benny Bufano [1890-1970], an Italian-born Bay Area artist, was tapped to sculpt something with the melted gun metal (he mixed in some bronze so it wouldn't rust in the S.F. Bay dampness). Bufano sculpted "St. Francis of the Guns," a nearly 9-ft tall figure of a robed Catholic saint, his arms spread in peaceful greeting. On his robe, Benny created a mosaic mural showing the glowing heads of four of America's greatest assassinated leaders: Abe Lincoln, Martin Luther King Jr., Robert Kennedy & John F. Kennedy. The naive caricatures capture all four with worried frowns.

1990 - Parque de la Paz / Peace Park, Plaza de la Paz / Peace Square, downtown Managua (Nicaragua). Commemorates the end of the Contra Conflict [1979-1990]. "The fierce weapon-buying campaign of President Violeta Chamorro (who became president on on April 25, 1990) eradicated the threat of persisting violence." "Basically, a huge hole was dug in the ground and then filled with guns & cement, part of the park sculpted into a lighthouse & an abstract modern structure of squares, while the other part of the park is really rough & crude, and looks as if they poured a bunch of concrete on the edge of a small hill & then started jamming rifles into the quickly setting concrete." The park now suffers from neglect, homelessness & valdalism. Right image shows cement-covered AK-47's.

Date? - Monumento de la Paz / Peace Monument, Parque de la Paz / Peace Park, Plaza de la Paz / Peace Square, downtown Managua (Nicaragua). "Concrete encased tank left over from the Contra War [of the late 1980's]."

1994 - "Urban Peace Circle," Sam Smith Park, Seattle, Washington (USA). Dedicated to children killed by gun violence in Seattle’s inner city. "Culmination of a gun buy-back program instituted by Stop The Violence, an organization founded in 1992 in response to the tragic deaths of six youths from the Puget Sound area. Meant to contrast the chaos and violence of the present with hope for a peaceful future. To underscore the gravity of this message, several of the reclaimed guns were entombed in the concrete base of the sculpture. Created by Seattle artist Gerard Tsutakawa. Over 10 feet tall & 5 feet wide. Jagged sides characterizing chaos and hostility give way to a smooth circular aperture meant to provide viewers with a symbolic view beyond the violence to friendship and understanding."

1995 - Tour de la Paix / Peace Tower, Beirut (Lebanon). Concrete tower embedding old guns & tanks. "Accumulation de chars et de canons dans du béton, 32 m de haut et d'un poids de 6 000 tonnes. La plus grande sculpture faite par Arman [1928-2005] à ce jour. Une des plus grandes sculptures contemporaines dans le monde."

1996 - "A Landmark for Peace," MLK Park, one block west of 17th Street & College Avenue, Indianapolis, Indiana (USA). Marks the spot where presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy [1926-1968] announced on April 4, 1968, to a large, mostly Black audience that Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. [1929-1968] had just been assassinated in Memphis, Tennessee. (Kennedy was assassinated on June 6, 1968.) Designed by Indiana artist Greg Perry, the monument includes busts of King & Kennedy sculpted by controversial artist Daniel Edwards from handguns melted down after a police buy back program. Click here for a description by Rev. Chris Buice of Knoxville, Tennessee, including text of Kennedy's speech which helped prevent race riots as occured in at least 110 other US cities. Click here for a 2009 video about the event and monument. Click here for air view of the park & monument. A plaque credits Diane Meyer Simon and various Simon family interests as major contributors. The plaque also says that the monument is "Dedicated to the memory of Larry Conrad" but says nothing about Conrad (a local lawyer and Democratic politician who died in 1990). Visited by EWL 08Aug09.

November 1996 - "Phoenix Rising," Minneapolis, Minnesota (USA). "On Thursday, Minneapolis sculptor Karen Sontag-Sattel will install a 4,000-pound, 10-foot image of 'Phoenix Rising' on the public service level of the Hennepin County Government Center. A major section of the sculpture was cast with steel from handguns purchased during the county's 1992 'Drop Your Guns' program."

S C U L P T

1997 - Guns to Plowshares, Judiciary Square Metro Stattion, Washington, DC (USA). Sculpture by Esther & Michael Augsburger: 20-foot plowshare with 3,000 welded handguns donated by the Metropolitan Police. Entry #1111 in the "Peace Movement Directory" by James Richard Bennett (2001).

S C U L P T

Date? - Unnamed peace sculpture, across from the Cinematek Theater, Derech Hebron, Jerusalem (Israel). Base is made of machine guns & mortars beat into plowshears. Inscribed in Hebrew & Arabic from Isaiah Chapter 2 Verse 4: "Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore. And they shall beat their swords into plowshears and their spears into pruning hooks."

F I N S

May 30, 1998 - "The Fin Project: From Swords Into Plowshares," Magnuson Park, Sand Point, Seattle, Washington (USA). 22 submarine fins. Two monuments in different cities (Seattle & Miami, Florida) made from the surplus fins of nuclear attack submarines by sculptor John T. Young. Entry #1053 in the "Peace Movement Directory" by James Richard Bennett (2001).

F I N S

September 2002 - "The Fin Project: From Swords Into Plowshares," Pelican Harbor, North Bay Village, Miami, Florida (USA). Made from 24 surplus fins of nuclear attack submarines by scupltor John T. Young. Similar monument in Seattle, Washington.

B E L L

1999 - Bell of Peace, International Centre of Culture (The Pyramid), Boulevard Deshmoret e Kombit, Tirana (Albania). "Made as a memorial to peace by the children of Shkodra. Its metal comes from thousands of bullet cartridges, fired off during the lawless 1990's." "Originally the mausoleum for Stalinist dictator Enver Hoxha [1908-1985], the Pyramid has seen the eviction of Hoxha's corporeal remains and the burgeoning of Albania's interest in the culture and arts."

B E L L

Date? - Friedensglocke / Peace Bell, Rathaus, Dessau (Germany). Ein Denkmal für die politische Wende 1989 in der Deutschen Demokratischen Republik. Sie wurde aus den Waffen der Kampfgruppen gegossen." The Peace Bell is a monument to the political changes of 1989. Made from 1250 assault rifles, 174 light machine guns, 87 anti-tank rifles & 171 pistols in an iron foundry Dessauer molten steel arms of the battle groups of the GDR, with the help of donations means that 4.2 t heavy cast bell.

January 15, 2000 - Peace Bell, Martin Luther King, Jr. Civic Center Building (west entrance), 2180 Milvia Street, Berkeley, California (USA). Cast from melted guns for the 50th anniversary of the UN Charter (signed in the War Memorial Building in nearby San Francisco) by Bruce Hasson, founder of the "Bell Project" which promotes world peace by using melted-down firearms to cast bells which incorporate images of nonviolence and environmental concerns. Rung at the War Memorial Building by Attorney General Janet Reno.

2000 - Monument de la Paix / Peace Monument, Timbuktu (Mali). Steps to the monument are covered with welded small arms laid down by warring factions. Also called Flamme de la Paix.

Date? - Canon avec Noeud / Twisted cannon, Palais des Nations, Geneva (Switzerland). "Une pièce d’artillerie avec son canon tordu est pointée sur le Palais des Nations. Quand tous les canons du monde auront cette allure, l’humanité ira mieux."

G U N S

2001 - The Gun Sculpture, Edmonton, Alberta (Canada). "Artists Wallis Kendal & Sandra Bromley took 7,000 guns of all kinds, from small handguns to rocket launchers, and fused them into a monolith called The Gun Sculpture. The purpose of the piece is to encourage discussions about violence. The artwork has toured all over, most recently as an installation at the United Nations complex in Vienna (Austria) where it was part of The Art of Peacekeeping exhibit last summer." /// "The artists consider their full project to consist of three elements: a large cube made from weapons, a series of photographs & text on victims of violence, & a blackboard for visitor comments. Obviously, such a diverse & diffuse presentation of content is not a ‘sculpture,’ per se, but rather is an installation."

2001 - Throne of Weapons, Maputo (Mozambique). By Cristovao (Kester) Estevao. Made from weapons used in Mozambique. "Bought by the British Museum from the 2002 Christian Aid exhibition ‘Swords into Ploughshares.’ It has travelled the length and breadth of the UK this year, being displayed in schools, churches, youth centres & a prison, as well as in museums, to represent Africa in 2005 as a symbol of a positive, forward-looking future." Click here for a PDF description of the chair from the British Museum.

July 4, 2002 - Phoenix Peace Fountain, Coleraine, County Londonderry (Northern Ireland). Gift from "the communities of the USA to the communities of Northern Ireland,...celebrates 'Northern Ireland rising from the ashes of past violence...' In the form of Giant's Causeway stones... Above these sits the phoenix bird arising from the flames... Within are the melted down thousands of guns which were collected from across America between March 2001 and February 2002. Some of the outlines of these firearms are still to be seen within the 'Nest' of the bird and also at the base of the pool." Contributors mainly from northern Ohio. Project led by Dr. Michael J. Whitely of Kent State University & Inspirational Media International, Inc. (IMI).

October? 2004 - "Bird of Peace," Sanderson Park, Phnom Penh (Cambodia). Commissioned by Australian Embassy. Made out of old guns & weapons that had been used by the Khmer Rouge.

2005 - "Release the Fear," Phoenix, Arizona (USA). "Pedestrians and drivers on Central Avenue & East Roosevelt Street. no doubt experience a chill when they first notice the pile of pistols, knives, rifles & other deadly weapons at the base of an otherwise merry stylized figure bursting out of the pavement. Upon closer inspection, it's obvious the weapons are safely fused to the base of the sculpture. 'Release the Fear' was erected in this tiny public park in 2005 by Phoenix artist Robert John Miley. It's composed of 8 1/2 tons of metal, of which 8,000 lbs. is from 'weapons used in violent acts collected throughout Arizona,' according to the inscription."

Date? - Monumento à Paz / Peace Monument, Praça do Imigrante / Immigrant Square, Novo Hamburgo, Rio Grande do Sul (Brazil). "Also called Monument to Disarmament. Was made from a disarmament campaign in the city, where several segments joined to a manifesto against violence. The memorial is a large bird taking the weapons away. By artist Marciano Schmitz."

September 27, 2007 - "World of Peace," Kompong Thom (Cambodia). "Depicts three catfish with a globe balancing on the nose of the highest leaping fish." Made out of old guns & weapons that had been used by the Khmer Rouge.

September 30, 2007 - "Naga for Peace & Development," Batambang (Cambodia). "I followed the river down to a large square surrounding a large metal sculpture of (you guessed it) Naga. As I approached the statue, it began to look a little bizarre, as if crafted from many small pieces. It turns out that the large statue is made out of old guns & weapons that had been used by the Khmer Rouge." Inscription on plaque: "This Peace Monument commemorates the commitment, efforts and hopes of the Cambodian people in breaking away from the violent past in this province, and in establishing a peaceful, non-violent society. The Monument was created from weapons collected from or with the residents in Battambang province, under the joint cooperation of government Offices, Police, Cambodia NGOs, and JSAC (Japan Assistance Team for Small Arms Management in Cambodia). These weapons were destroyed in public destruction ceremonies held in this province. All of these activities were conducted under the "Peace Building and Comprehensive Small Arms Management program in Cambodia", from September 2005 to September 2007, funded by the Government of Japan. This Monument was created by artists: Toun Thorneakes, Ou Vanndy, Ouk Chim Vichet and Kim Sandy, with the artistic support and coordination from Sasha Constable and technical support from Developement Support Workshop (DTW) and JSAC."

After 2007 - "Monument to Disarmament & Life," Parque Tercer Milenio / Third Millennium Park, Bogota (Columbia). Across from the Institute of Forensic Medicine. "The 5,682 firearms collected during 14 days of disarmament between 1996 & 2007 are now [fused in] the base of a monument." /// "This park was originally a really rough neighbourhood notorious for guns, drugs & prostitution, but the government bulldozed the place several years ago, replacing the slum with a park & this memorial which was made with the metal of hundreds of melted down weapons. Ironically the sculpture originally was covered with loads of metal doves to signify peace, but these were subsequently snapped off and sold…potentially to buy drugs and guns."

July 15, 2009 - "Pillar of Peace Monument," Main Roundabout, Kampala & Juba Roads, Gulu (Uganda). By Ugandan artist David Kigozi. To commemorate education’s importance in ensuring peace, The Dutch Embassy commissioned a sculpture conisting of three destroyed guns at the feet of a girl and boy reading a pile of text books. After speaking at length about education’s role in a post-conflict environment, the Dutch Ambassador, Jeroen Verheul, celebrated the sculpture’s unveiling by hosting a lunch for local community leaders. The books, Verheul noted, portrayed education as a pillar of knowledge, an instrument of reconciliation and a basis for moral building. /// "When the ‘Pillar of Peace’ had just been put up, it depicted a life-sized boy and girl standing behind a neat pile of books. They stared keenly at the page open before them, their arms leafing through large pages. At the sides of their feet were five guns cast aside. This symbolized their shift towards courting the acquisition of knowledge other than conflict. Monuments like this are meant to reflect a strategic goal, in this case enduring enlightenment which is supposed to bring peace."

D O V E

December 24, 2011 - "Unhate Dove," University of Tripoli, Tripoli (Libya). "Following on from the launch of its Unhate Project in November, Benetton has unveiled its first monument to peace through Colors Magazine. The publication donated the large dove sculpture to the Libyan capital on Saturday, which marked the country's first Independence Day in 42 years. Made by Fabrica, the Unhate Dove art installation is composed of over 15,000 spent shell cartridges picked up in the world’s 'hot spots' & symbolises newfound peace in the region. 'The official handing-over of the dove is the UNHATE Foundation’s first act, both concrete and symbolic,' said Alessandro Benetton, Benetton Group’s executive deputy chairman, on behalf of the Foundation."

Date? - "Stop the Violence" sculpture, St. Ein Ganim, Petah Tikva, near Tel Aviv (Israel). "A sculpture of a padlock on the front of a gun, with the inscription 'stop violence!' in Hebrew." "In memory of Tal Reichman, a 17-year old boy who worked as an usher at work in taxis & was murdered 29/10/99 by a driver who fell out with him." Photo by Dr. Avishai Teicher.

August 2012 - "Peace Monuments of War Material," Arboga (Sweden). "An international sculpture symposium with the aim of creating peace monuments from scrapped military equipment. Started with an art exhibition in Beijing (China) in December 2011 of sketches that the artists made for their sculptures. Then with a symposium in August 2012 when all these internationally active artists gathered to make peace monuments in the form of sculptures. Our plan is that these peace monuments shall form a permanent sculpture park (Skulpturparken Arboga) in some beautiful place close by. Artist Richard Brixel is the initiator of the project. The association MEKENS VÄNNER of Arboga owns and runs this project with Håkan Sterner Eventkonsult as our project leader. Here are the artists (images show the works in green): 1. Zhu Ying—China "Flower in Arboga" 2. Devin Laurence Field-USA "Arch of Arboga—Arbogaporten" 3. Li Jinze-China "Shake hands for peace" 4. Insa Winkler-Tyskland "From heart to heart-green grotta" 5. Lasse Nilsson—Sverige "The Savior" 6. Mats Lodén-Sverige "Peaceful character" 7. Mats Lodén-Sverige "Ikaros" 8. Yang Junlan-China "We are family" 9. Wen Chao-China "War is over" 10. Xu Zhenglong-China "Harmony and unity—from missile to pen" 11. Dong Shubing-China "Wind and dust" 12. Jenny Grönvall-Sverige "Make food not war" 13. Florin Strejac-Rumänien "The butterfly projekt" 14. Anthony Heywood-UK "Send the weapons to the moon" 15. Linda Verkaaik-Holland "The wave—the flying dutchman" 16. Dong Shubing-China "Let alla weapons be sealed up" 17. Wei Xiaming-China "A letter of peace"

Future - Peace & Love Tower, downtown Manhattan, New York City, New York (USA). UnGun.org has been collecting guns for over 3 years, and the main structure will be supported by 5,000,000 guns that have been donated to the cause. The structure will feature a top heavy design and the walls will act as one large greenhouse. Choski and Associates won the contract to build the structure in 2006.

Future - USA Peace Monument, location to be determined (USA). From WKYC Television, February 21, 2013: "JEFFERSON, Ohio -- More than 10 years ago, a peace mission was formed with the mission to create a monument out of melted criminal weapons that law enforcement officials collected. The final product, the Peace Fountain, was unveiled in Northern Ireland [on July 4, 2002]. // Now, the Ashtabula County Sheriff and a former deputy are continuing the charge to collect criminal and discarded weapons so they can make a peace monument for the United States. Sheriff William Johnson and Dr. Michael Whitely (now a professor [at Kent State University]) are reaching out to law enforcement officials across the country to gauge their interest in joining their peace monument mission. 'In the wake of so much tragedy in the U.S. due to gun violence, we must make this stand as law enforcement officers for the safety of our nation,' Johnson says. // The firearms collected will then be melted down and fashioned into a peace monument that will be erected at a yet-to-be-determined location in the U.S. The symbolic ingots from the nationwide collection are being stored at an undisclosed location in Ohio awaiting their final transformation from weapons of destruction to symbolic monument. The final destination of the USA Peace Monument is in its early planning stages, but to date, seven cities have expressed an interest in providing a home for the monument -- primarily on the east coast with one bid coming from a Midwestern location. // Any law enforcement agencies or private citizens wishing to be a part of the gun-meltdown mission should contact Sheriff Johnson at 440-576-9046 or via e-mail at sheriff@ashtabulacounty.us. Dr. Michael Whitely can be reached at the IMI office at 440-354-9981 or by e-mail at mwhitely@kent.edu."