63 Peace Monuments Related to Reconciliation

The word reconcilation is used in different contexts, including Christian theology and personal relationships. Reconciliation monuments usually symbolize attempts to restore civic peace after secular conflicts such as racism and war. In this sense, reconcilation is related to the German Vergangenheitsbewältigung ("struggle to overcome the past") & to the attemps of some democratic countries to raise consciousness of earlier undemocratic historical eras, such as the South African process of truth and reconciliation, or the Czechoslovakian or Polish lustration. Comparisons have also been made with the Soviet process of glasnost.

This web page shows a miscelaneous collection of monuments specifically named for reconcilation or closely related to the process of restoring peace after secular conflict. The earliest examples are paintings of famous historic reconcilations including the Biblical parable of the Prodigal Son. In the late 19th century & early 20th century, a number of reconcilation monuments were constructed to help restore unity after the conflict of the American Civil War. In the late 20th century, many reconciliation monuments have related to state terrorism in Latin American countries such as Argentina, Brazil, El Salvador, Guatemala & Clile. Other web pages show peace monuments for the American Civil War, for the Holocaust, and for terrorism in general.

See the end of this web page for special section on "Reconciliation", a famous monument by Josefina de Vasconcellos [1903-2004].

Right click image to enlarge.

c.1510 - Il Figlio Prodigo / The Prodigal Son, Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen, Rotterdam (Netherlands). By Hieronymus Bosch [c1450-1516]. Also known as The Wayfarer, The Vagabond or The Pedlar.

1628 - The Reconcilation of King Henry III & Henry of Navarre, Memorial Art Gallery of the University of Rochester, New York (USA). By Peter Paul Rubens [1577-1640].

1662 - "Terugkeer van de Verloren Zoon / The Return of the Prodigal Son," Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg (Russia). By Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn [1606-1669]. Also known as "The Merciful Father." Henri Nouwen [1932-1996] wrote a short book, "The Return of the Prodigal Son", based on his contemplation of Rembrandt's painting of the same name.

1855 - The Reconcilation of Montagues and Capulets (Over the Dead Bodies of Romeo and Juliet), Yale Center for British Art, New Haven, Connecticut (USA). By Frederic Lord Leighton [1830 – 1896].

1867 - "Reconciliation Quilt," International Quilt Study Center & Museum, University of Nebraska, Loncoln, Nebraska (USA). Made by Lucinda Ward Honstain [1820-1904] of Williamsburg, Brooklyn, New York. Depicts her view of life before, during & right after the Civil War. It fetched the record highest price for a quilt at auction ($264,000, at Sotheby’s in 1991). Blocks include a black man addressing a white man on horseback, saying, 'Master I am Free.' Another shows Confederate President Jefferson Davis alongside a woman holding an American flag, and others show Honstain’s house & her husband & son in uniform."

1890

C H U R C H

1894-1985 - Church of Reconciliation, Bernauer Straße, Berlin (Germany). "The division of Berlin in 1945 left the Church of Reconciliation in the Soviet Sector, but the pavement in front of the church and most of its parishioners were in the French sector. This meant that when the Berlin Wall was built in 1961, the outer wall passed directly in front of the church [left image] and the inner wall passed directly behind it leaving the church blocked off to all but the border guards. The Church of Reconciliation was an increasing annoyance to the GDR (German Democratic Republic or ‘East’ Germany) government. The nave was destroyed on 22nd January 1985 followed by the church steeple six days later [right image]. At the time, images of the crumbling steeple were broadcast around the world, causing both bewilderment & disgust. Instead of removing the building as a symbol, it assured that it would pass into legend." /// See Kapelle der Versöhnung / Chapel of Reconciliation (1999).

T O M B

April 27, 1897 - Grant's Tomb, Morningside Heights , New York City, New York (USA). "The largest mausoleum in North America. The bodies of Ulysses S. Grant [1822-1885], the Union Civil War General & 18th President of the U.S., and his wife Julia Dent Grant are entombed there. The phrase 'Let us have peace' greets visitors at the entrance of the mausoleum. It is taken from Grant’s words in his 1885 memoirs. Inside, there’s a mural of the two generals [Lee & Grant] shaking hands."

1899 - Soldiers & Sailors Monument, Allentown, Pennsylvania (USA). "The statues of a Confederate soldier & Union soldier stand abreast...with the legend 'One Flag One Country' etched behind them...It's apparently the only municipal monument in the North that honors a Confederate soldier, according to a 2010 article by Allentown historian William Watson. Edward Gallagher, the monument's designer, was inspired to include the statue after learning that one-time Confederate general Joseph Wheeler had led American troops in the Spanish-American War in 1898." CIVIL_WAR PA 1899

1900

1910 - New York Peace Monument, Point Park, Lookout Mountain, Chattanooga, Tennessee (USA). Statues at peak are soldiers from North & South shaking hands. Built by State of New York.

Date? - 79th New York Infantry Monument, 17th Street, Fort Sanders, Knoxville, Tennessee (USA). At Masonic Hall. Memorializes Battle of Fort Sanders. Also depicts soldiers from North & South shaking hands. Any connection to the them of the far laerger monument at Lookout Mountain? Inscription: "The hands that once were raised in strife / Now clasp a brother's hand. / And long as flows the tide of life - / In peace, in toil, when war is rife - / we shall as brothers stand. / One heart one soul for our free land. / J.J.C. Clarke."

S T A T U E

October 10, 1911 - "The Triumph of Peace," 14th Street Entrance, Piedmont Park, Atlanta, Georgia (USA). Also called Peace Monument to "The Old Guard." /// "Commemorates the historic 'Mission of Peace' to the North in 1879 by the Gate City Guard of Atlanta." Depicts a Civil War soldier lowering his rifle as the Angel of Peace holds an olive branch above his head. By New York sculptor Allen Newman [1875-1940]. His model for the angel of peace was "America's first supermodel" Audrey Munson [1891-1996] whose classic beauty attracted numerous sculptors & artists during the 1910's (15 statues in NY City alone), then spent 65 years in an upstate mental institution. See her biography "She inspired monuments and died in obscurity" by James Bone. /// 103rd rededication took place October 11, 2015.

April 20, 1914 - New York Monument, Andersonville, Georgia (USA). Huge 18-foot monument. "The image on the reverse depicts two Andersonville prisoners. One is seen as dejected while the other appears hopeful. An angel approaches the prisoners carrying an olive branch, the symbol of peace, which was used to represent the reconciliation between the North and the South." /// "On the front of the monument is a bronze panel featuring dedication text & a female figure bearing a mourning wreath." OLIVES ANGELS 1914 CIVIL_WAR GA

May 28, 1933 - Hungary Mourns Her Lost Children," Debrecen (Hungary). "In an act of reconciliation, the statue was carved by French sculptor Emile Guillaume [1867-1942] and offered to Debrecen by British Viscount Lord Rothermere." Guillaume also sculpted La Délivrance (qv).

1940 - "Cross of Nails," Coventry Cathedral, Coventry (England). "Shortly after the [cathedral's] destruction [on 14 November 1940], the cathedral stonemason, Jock Forbes, noticed that two of the charred medieval roof timbers had fallen in the shape of a cross. He set them up in the ruins where they were later placed on an altar of rubble with the moving words ‘Father Forgive’ inscribed on the Sanctuary wall. Another cross was fashioned from three medieval nails by local priest, the Revd Arthur Wales. The Cross of Nails has become the symbol of Coventry’s ministry of reconciliation." /// Right image is "an abstract interpretation of the Charred Cross in the old cathedral ruins." /// "In post conflict Europe of the 1950's & 1960's, the presentation of a Cross of Nails to churches in Kiel, Dresden, Berlin & other cities destroyed by Allied bombing, symbolized peace & the growing trust & partnership that developed." See Nikolaikirche (Hamburg), Chapel of Reconciliation (Berlin Wall Memorial, Berlin), Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church (Berlin), Friedenszeichen / Coventry Peace Monument (Lindau), and elsewhere.

1950

1953 - Bridge of Europe / Pont de l'Europe, across Rhine River between Strasbourg (France) & Kehl (Germany). "Permanent artistic installation, a bond between two countries for which the border formerly seemed & wanted to be insuperable. According to Roland Ries, then mayor of Strasbourg, 'Here, it is indeed Europe, because this bridge connects two countries that have been torn apart for a long time; the reconciliation of these two countries is today one of the surest supports of the European construction.'"

Date? - Reconcilation Monument, Zelenogorsk, St.Petersburg (Russia). "Dedicated to the reconciliation of the participants of the Soviet-Finnish war of 1939-1940."

1960

May 31, 1961 - Vredesmonument/Peace Monument, Melrose House, Vereeniging, Vaal Triangle, Gauteng province (South Africa). Dedicated October 10, 1961? "Honors all who fought & all who died during the Anglo-Boer War [1899-1902]. "Coert Steynberg [1905-1982], famed SA artist, was commissioned to design a monument honoring all who fought and all who lost their lives for peace during the Anglo-Boer War. The motto "Gewond maar nie onoorwonne" (Wounded but Not Defeated) enbodies the fighting spirit of the Boer Nation after surrendering to the British. This motto is still significant today as it represents the character, courage & spirit of reconciliation of the New South African Nation. Unveiled by the then Prime Minister, Dr. H.F. Verwoerd. Vereeniging was chosen as the site for the monument because the peace negotiations that ultimately ended the war took place in Vereeniging." /// "Symbolizes the spiritual revival of a vanquished people. It is in the form of a fatally wounded soldier from farmers whose heart the spirit of hope, faith and power up rice to an insured due. The leaning figure, in light granite with a staaldolk in his heart, resting on a heavy base. The spirit, which only outlines proposed where it wound up rice, spot free of steel and symboliseer and mental purification through intense suffering unbreakable strength. Steyn Store monument as one of his best works considered, the extraordinary abstract and unusual symbolism major disagreement caused, which, in many of his subsequent public commissions returned to a more recognizable representation that easily by the public understand could. [Google translation]"

About 1965 - Open Hand Monument, in "The Ditch of Consideration," Chandigahr, Punjab (India). Heavy copper hand 100 feet high rotates in the wind. Also looks like dove of peace. By French architect Le Corbusier [1887-1965] who said, "This sign of the Open Hand is a sign of peace and of reconciliation. [It] is meant to receive the created riches, and to distribute them to the peoples of the world. That should be the symbol of our epoch." Corbu made the overall plan for Chandigahr and designed some of the original buildings. Click here for air view.

April 30, 1967 - Protestant Church of Reconciliation, Dachau (Germany). Designed by Helmut Striffler. Dedicated by the Rev. Martin Niemöller [1892-1984], one of the most famous prisoners in Dachau and the first sent to Sachsenhausen after he was convicted of treason for preaching against the Nazi government.

1965 - Konzentrationslager Dachau / Dachau Concentration Camp, Dachau, Bavaria (Germany). First Nazi concentration camp. Now Gedenkstatte Dachau / Dachau Concentration Camp Memorial Site.

October 15, 1967 - Friedland Gedächnisstätte / All Nations Peace and Reconciliation Memorial, Above Friedland, District of Göttingen, Lower Saxony, (Germany). Note persons standing at the foot of the monument! Friedland is situated on the river Leine, approximately 13 km south of Göttingen. Its seat is in the village Groß Schneen.

1970

1980

1982 - Mandela Gardens, Millennium Square (SE corner), Calverley Street, Leeds (England). "Officially reopened" in April 2001 by Nelson Mandela. Feature a 16-foot bronze statue entitled "Both Arms" by Leeds-born sculptor Kenneth Armitage [1916-2002]. "The arms express a feeling of welcome and are envisaged as a monument to friendship."

1987 - Reconciliation Park, Mankato, Minnesota (USA). "Relations between the Dakota & non-Dakota people of the area were strained for decades after the US-Dakota War, particularly the hanging of the 38 Dakota. In 1980 the City of Mankato presented the Dakota people with a park. In 1987, the 125th anniversary of the execution, Minnesota's Governor declared a Year of Reconciliation. The City of Mankato commissioned local artist Tom Miller to create the statue 'Winter Warrior' that stands at the site of the execution, next to the Mankato Public Library. In 1992 the City of Mankato purchased the site of the execution and named it Reconciliation Park. People from the Mankato community worked with Dakota people to raise funds for a statue of a white buffalo at the park. People gather there every December 26th, the anniversary of the execution, in prayer & remembrance.

1989 - Statue of National Reconciliation, Klafthmonos Square, Athens (Greece). Celebrates the 40 years from the end of the 1945-49 civil war. Klafthmonos Square means "square of grief," named for civil servants of 19th century who were fired from their state jobs every time the government was changes and gathered there to cry for their fate.

1990

April 1990 - Chile. The Chilean Truth & Reconciliation Commissions is established, shortly after this country's return to democracy. It is the first Truth & Reconciliation Commission to use this name, and most truth commissions since then have used a variation on this title."

"Reconciliation Triangle:" Five identical monuments by Stephen Broadbent expressing remorse for the slave trade.

Sept. 19, 1990 - Concert Street, Liverpool (England). One of the 3 originals. Also in Belfast & Glasgow.

2007 - Liverpool (England). Miniatures cast on 20th anniversary of the Slave Trade Act.

2007? - Cotonou? (Benin). A former source of slaves.

March 30, 2007 - Richmond, Virginia (USA). On site of a former slave market.

October 8, 1992 - Reconcilation (National Peacekeeping Monument), Ottawa, Ontario (Canada). Memorializes Canadian "casques bleus / blue caps" who served in UN peace-keeping missions in Korea (1947), Palestine (1948), Golan Heights, former Yugoslavia, and Somalia. Erected during 125th anniversary of Canadian Confederation (Canada 125). Base includes 1956 quote from Lester Pearson [1897-1972]: "We need action not only to end the fighting but to make the peace... My own government would be glad to recommend Canadian participation in such a United Nations force, a truly international peace and police force." /// Entry #1302 in the "Peace Movement Directory" by James Richard Bennett (2001). Click here for an analysis of this monument by Paul Gough.

1992 - "Reconciliation/Hands Across the Divide" Statue, west end of Craigavon Bridge, Londonderry (Northern Ireland). Produced by Maurice Harron. An image of the statue illustrates the website and brochures of the "Ulster Project" in Oak Ridge, Tennessee (USA).

1994 - Christo de la Paz/Christ of Peace, on road to Comalapa International Airport, San Marcos (El Salvador). "Since 1994, it would represent a momentous event in the history of El Salvador, in the framework of the Central American and Caribbean Games in the same year. This imposing sculpture was done by Ruben Martinez, who also produced the Monument to the Constitution. It symbolizes that reconciliation was achieved between the right & left movements politics. In addition, the message reads "Peace be with you" and message to all the Salvadoran people. The material in this work was based on shell casings, brass and bronze. It says it also seized weapons used by both sides during the conflict. Around the square representing the Peace Accords in El Salvador occurred. -- Google translation.

September 5, 1994 - Protestantendenkmal / Salzburger Monument of Reconciliation, Salzburger Park, Savannah, Georgia (USA). Between Lincoln Street & Abercorn Street ramps on Bay Street. "Dedicated by the country (predominantly Roman Catholic) to the descendants of the Georgia Salzburgers (Protestants) who were exiled in 1731 from Salzburg because of their religious beliefs. Green serpentine stone from the Hohe Tauern region of Austria. Human figures chiseled by Anton Thuswaldner depict the people forced from their homes in Salzburg. Inscribed, "Denied Their Religious Freedom They Were Forced to Leave Their Homeland." The first monument to be given to Savannah by a foreign government.

1999 - Kapelle der Versöhnung / Chapel of Reconciliation, Berlin Wall Memorial, Berlin (Germany). Built on the site of the Church of Reconciliation (see 1894-1985). Note steel markers in the ground tracing the outline of the former church. Middle image shows enclosure for the former church's 3 bells. Right image shows its twisted cross. Chapel contains reconstruction of the Cross of Nails in Coventry (England). "Reconciliation" by Josephina de Vasconcellos (qv) directly in front. All 3 images by EWL 7 Sept 2013.

September 7, 2013 - Photographer Ossian Fraser testing the reflectivity of a section of the Berlin Wall. Image by EWL 7 Sept 2013.

1999 - "Reconcilation," Kapelle der Versöhnung / Chapel of Reconciliation, Berlin Wall Memorial, Berlin (Germany). Sculpted by Josefina de Vasconcellos [1905-2005]. One of 5 duplicates. See others in Bradford & Coventry (England), Belfast (Northern Ireland) & Hiroshima (Japan). Right image shows Bible & barbed wire on ground between the two figures. /// Left & right images by EWL 7 Sept 2013.

July 12, 1995 - "Reconcilation," International Conference Center Hiroshima, Peace Memorial Park, Hiroshima (Japan). Statue by Josefina de Vasconcellos [1905-2005]. One of four copies of an original statue at University of Bradford (England). Click here to see all five statues. Image by EWL shows Prof. Peter Van Den Dungen, University of Bradford (far left), Schera Chadwick & Shigeko Uppuluri. Photo by EWL Oct 2008. See all copies of this sculpture at bottom of this web page.

2000

2001 - Apartheid Museum, Southdale, Johannesburg (South Africa). " The pre-eminent museum in the world dealing with 20th century South Africa, at the heart of which is the apartheid story... The Gold Reef City Casino was built and an adjacent piece of land given for the construction of a museum... Illustrates the rise and fall of apartheid... The exhibits have been assembled and organised by a multi-disciplinary team of curators, film-makers, historians and designers. They include provocative film footage, photographs, text panels and artefacts illustrating the events and human stories that are part of the epic saga, known as apartheid. A series of 22 individual exhibition areas takes the visitor through a dramatic emotional journey that tells a story of a state-sanctioned system based on racial discrimination and the struggle of the majority to overthrow this tyranny." /// "The seven pillars of South Africa’s current constitution [are] displayed outside the Apartheid Museum: Democracy, equality, reconciliation, diversity, responsibility, respect & freedom."

2001 - Reconciliation Place, Parliamentary Triangle , Canberrra, Australian Capital Territory (Australia). "An urban landscape design established as a monument to reconciliation between Australia’s Indigenous people and settler population."

2001 - Reconciliaiton Plaza, US Military Academy, West Point, New York (USA). Central marker inscribed "The Class of 1961 presents this memorial to the United States Military Academy on the occasion of its 40th reunion and one hundred forty years after the graduation of the Classes of May and June 1861. We commemorate the reconciliation betweeen North and South and dedicate this memorial to our classmates who died in service to our Nation."

October 20, 2001 - Kentucky Memorial, Kentucky Avenue, Vicksburg, Mississippi (USA). "Soldiers from Kentucky fought on both sides of the Battle. The Memorial is a statue of Presidents Lincoln & Davis (both Kentucky natives) with words from both of them calling for reconciliation between the North and South. At the start of the war Kentucky declared itself to be Neutral and only sided with Union after a Confederate invasion. Even so, the Conferdacy still had support there and was able to recruit soldiers both then and during a later invasion in 1862."

2002 - Spirit Warriors Sculpture," Little Big Horn Battlefield National Monument, Crow Agency, Montana (USA). Iron sculpture by native artist Colleen Cutschall honoring Native Americans was placed next to the 1881 memorial (qv) after winning a "Peace Through Unity" competition. "On the memorial's walls are the names of many of the warriors involved in the battle and words of wisdom they are credited with saying. A "Spirit Gate Window" in the memorial's side looks directly at the Custer memorial on the hill in a gesture to welcome the Calvary dead into the memorial's circle."

April 3, 2003 - Statue of Abraham Lincoln & Child, Visitor Center at Tredegar Iron Works, Richmond National Battlefield Park, Richmond, Virginia (USA). Inscribed "To Bind Up the Nation's Wounds." "Some irrational people claim the statue has nothing to do with reconciliation." VA CIVIL_WAR LINCOLN 2003

B R I D G E

2003 - Peace Bridge, Freetown (Sierra Leone). "The Truth & Reconciliation Commission renamed the Congo Cross Bridge to mark the place where the invasion of Freetown on 6 January1999 was stopped. The Peace Bridge reminds the people of Sierra Leone that the war was overcome. And it gives hope that peace will come."

2003 - St. Ethelburga's Centre for Reconciliation & Peace, 78 Bishopsgate, London (England). "Christian-led, independent charity. Aims to encourage and enable people to practise reconciliation & peace-making in their communities & lives." Former Church of England "built around 1180. The present building was probably founded around 1400. Was the biggest building in Bishopsgate - now it's the smallest... Devastated by a massive IRA bomb on April 24, 1993. Rebuilt in a new form, reinstating its medieval exterior."

B R I D G E

2004 - Passerelle des Deux Rives / Gateway of the Two Banks, across Rhine River between Strasbourg (France) & Kehl (Germany). "Permanent artistic installation, a bond between two countries for which the border formerly seemed & wanted to be insuperable. According to Roland Ries, then mayor of Strasbourg, 'Here, it is indeed Europe, because this bridge connects two countries that have been torn apart for a long time; the reconciliation of these two countries is today one of the surest supports of the European construction.'" Not to be confused with the Bridge of Europe (qv) which is a highway bridge a few hundred meters downstream (right image).

March 21, 2005 - Gugulethu Seven Monument, Gugulethu, Cape Town (South Africa). Outside the Gugulethu police station on the corner of NY1 & NY111. Dedicated on Human Rights Day. "Remembers the brutal murder of seven young black activists by South African security forces on 3 March 1986. The young men were on their way to what they believed to be a job interview in a minivan driven by an undercover security officer, when they stopped at a roadblock and the police opened fire. Security forces covered up the crime, claiming it was an act of terrorism, but the real story was exposed during the Truth & Reconciliation process, and a memorial now stands at the sight where they were killed."

2005 - "Reconciliation: The Parable of the Prodigal Son," Duke Divinity School, Durham, North Carolina (USA). By Margaret Adams Parker. See Luke 15:11-32. "Everyday on the terrace of the beautiful new addition Duke Divinity School added in 2000 I walk by a stunning sculpture titled 'Reconciliation.' Made by the North Carolina artist Margaret Adams Parker, the sculpture tells the Luke 15 Prodigal Son story. But what Parker captures is a deeper story of a Forgiving Father & Two Lost Sons, powerfully capturing both reconciliation resisted & embraced. Clarence Jordan once wrote of the interracial Koinonia Farm in Georgia, 'This is what always baffles me -- Koinonia is forever dying & forever living. We should have conked out long ago, but somehow others came in the nick of time. This half-born condition is agonizing, and I could wish it otherwise, but there it is.' See the powerfully different faces, hands, and angles of the sculpture and the artist’s account. My favorite detail: the feet -- the 'deserving' elder son's work boots, the returning younger son's bare feet, the father's house slippers. And the pleading eyes of the one without whom a new future is impossible." /// Click here for artist's description.

June 2006 - Palace of Peace & Reconciliation, Astana (Kazakhstan). Also known as Palace of Peace & Accord. First used for Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions. Click here for info about a nearby statue of President Nursultan Nazarbayev dedicated on October 20, 2009.

2006 - "John Rabe & International Safety Zone Memorial Hall," Nanjing University, Nanjing (China). Contains "John Rabe International Research & Exchange Center for Peace and Reconciliation." John Rabe [1882-1950], "the good Nazi," was a German businessman who is best known for his efforts to stop the atrocities of the Japanese army during the Nanking Massacre.

2008-2011 - Monument to Humanity, Kars (Turkey). "For Naif Alibeyoglu, the former mayor of Kars whose idea it was, supposed to represent the victory of peace over enmity, its flood-lighting visible from neighbouring Armenia, 40 kilometres away. In Kars, opposition was led by Oktay Aktas, local head of the Nationalist Action Party, or MHP. “Why is one figure standing with its head bowed, as if ashamed," Aktas asks. Today, it stands unfinished. Its three-metre high hand, supposed to join the two figures, was never attached. It lies fingers up in the gravel in front. /// Reuters 12Jan2011: " The row centres on the prime minister's right to demand the removal of an artwork on aesthetic grounds. His comments come at a time when rapprochement between Muslim Turkey and Christian Armenia is at a standstill. Erdogan's comments have been seized on by Turkish nationalists who condemn the monument's message of understanding. A bid to normalise ties between neighbouring Turkey and Armenia suffered a blow last April when Yerevan froze ratification of a US-brokered peace accord. /// Armenian Weekly, March 11, 2011: "The demolition began on April 26 while Armenians worldwide commemorated the anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. In the presence of riot police, the heads of the statues were dismounted & trucked away. Thus, a conciliatory symbol has itself become a target of intolerance - a fate sculptor Mehmet Aksoy has likened to the destruction of Buddhist relics by the Taliban."" /// AP 03Mar2015: "Turkey's state-run news agency says a court has ordered President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to pay 10,000 Turkish Lira (US$ 4,000) in compensation to an artist for calling his sculpture — meant to promote reconciliation between Turkey & Armenia — a 'monstrosity.' Erdogan expressed his dislike in 2011 of Mehmet Aksoy's giant 'Monument to Humanity,' which was being erected in the eastern city of Kars, prompting local authorities there to dismantle it. Aksoy then sued Erdogan for 'insult.' Anadolu Agency said the court ordered Erdogan to compensate Aksoy for the mental anguish caused. Turkey & Armenia have no diplomatic ties & are at odds over the mass killings of Armenians under Ottoman rule. Next month, Armenians mark the 100th anniversary of the start of what experts deem to be genocide."

April 2009 - Celtic Peace Garden, IOSAS Centre, on Derry/Donegal border (Northern Ireland). IOSAS = "Island of Saints & Scholars." "The culmination of The Columba Community's work of reconciliation over the past 20 years. It is built near The White Oaks Centre & brings serenity & healing to visitors & to the residents of the Centre. Inspired by the 5th-12th Century spiritual renaissance in Europe, which followed the fall of the Roman Empire. The Garden, with its representations of the Cross of Patrick, the Boat of Brendan, the Island of Columba & the Oratory of Canice, inspires visitors to a spiritual re-awakening & renewal following the recent Troubles in this land. Also, a rough pathway round the perimeter affords Christian Pilgrims ample opportunity for reflective prayer." /// Image shows "Statue of The Risen Christ with the straw bale thatched roof oratory dedicated to St. Canice in the background. It has 21 beautiful stained glass windows telling the story of the saints of Ireland. The Statue & Windows were all designed by a Community Member, Maurice Harron, an internationaaly renowned sculptor."

June 27, 2009 - Monument of Reconciliation, Poltava (Ukraine). "Marks the 300th anniversary of the Battle of Poltava [June 27, 1709]... Symbolizes the reconciliation of the peoples of Russia, Sweden & Ukraine who fought in the Great Northern War [1700-1721] – the largest military conflict of the 18th century...Designed by architect Valery Tregubov. Consists of three joined arches under a common cupola or dome with a bell of unity. Three pillars of the monument are decorated with mosaic flags of the Russian Federation, Sweden & Ukraine created by artist Leonid Totskiy. Each pillar bears the inscription 'Time heals all wounds' in the appropriate language. At the center of the monument is a short column crowned with the dove of peace created by sculptor Seiran Margaryan."

2010

January 11, 2010 - Museo de la Memoria y los Derechos Humanos / Museum of Memory & Human Rights, Santiago (Chile). Commemorates the victims of human rights violations during the civic-military regime led by Augusto Pinochet between 1973 & 1990. Its inauguration by former President Michelle Bachelet was part of government works celebrating the bicentennial of Chile." The museum's "Human rights, universal challenge" room features a world map [right image] showing all truth & reconciliation commissions worldwide. /// "The Chilean TRC was established in April 1990, shortly after this country's return to democracy. It was the first Truth & Reconciliation Commission to use this name, and most truth commissions since then have used a variation on this title." CHILE 2010 MUSEUMS

2010 - VALDALIZED April 21, 2016 - Chinese Reconciliaiton Park, 1741 N Schuster Parkway , Tacoma, Washington (USA). "A memorial to the expulsion of Chinese citizens in Tacoma back in 1885." "A 4 acre park that is located at the southern end of the 1.5-mile Ruston Way waterfront along Commencement Bay, and is in the proximity of the early Chinese settlement that was burned down during the tragic expulsion." "Phase I was completed in 2010." /// "The Fuzhou Ting is a Chinese pavilion...donated from Fuzhou (China), one of Tacoma's Sister Cities, in support of our Chinese reconciliation efforts. Construction began in September 2010 & was completed in summer of 2011. A grand opening & dedication ceremony was conducted on September 22, 2011." /// "The stone lions guarding the Ting were damaged during the weekend of April 21, 2016." WA VALDALISM SISTER_CITIES 2010

M U S E U M

August 7, 2010 - James E. Davis Multicultural Museum of Peace, Crown Heights, Brooklyn, New York City, New York (USA). "A storefront shrine to dialog & reconciliation. So it's both ironic & appropriate that it stands mere meters away from the spot where the child of two West Indian immigrants was accidentally killed by a car driven by an Orthodox Jew from the Chabad Hasidic sect, whose world headquarters are a mere block away. The incident sparked three days of violence in 1991 that pitted the area's African American & Caribbean communities against the area's sizable Orthodox Jewish population. It resulted in a young Jew being killed in reprisal & millions of dollars worth of property destroyed. Named after James E. Davis [1962-2003], the late African American New York City councilman & co-founder [in 1990] of the 'Love Yourself Stop the Violence' organization, the museum's walls are covered in photos in his honor in hopes of educating people on the importance of standing together against violence." Founded by J.E. Davis' brother Geoffrey A. Davis. El Valle de los Caidos (The Valley of the Fallen), the giant mausoleum holding the remains of dictator Francisco Franco, outside Madrid July 12, 2011/Andrea Comas

October 27, 2010 - John Hope Franklin Reconciliation Park, Tulsa, Oklahoma (USA). "The long-awaited result of the 2001 Oklahoma Commission to Study the Tulsa Race Riot of 1921, called the worst civic disturbance in American history. The Park also tells the story of African Americans’ role in building Oklahoma & thus begins the long-delayed rendering of the full account of Oklahoma’s history... Features two primary art elements, created by Ed Dwight, the first African-American astronaut & prominent Denver artist: Hope Plaza – 16-foot granite structure containing three larger-than-life bronze sculptures representing actual pictures from the 1921 riot: Hostility – A white man fully armed for assault. Humiliation – A black man with his hands raised in surrender. Hope – The white director of the Red Cross holding a black baby. The Tower of Reconciliation – 25-foot-tall memorial tower depicts the history of the African American struggle from Africa to America – from the migration of slaves with Native Americans on the Trail of Tears, the slave labor experience in the Territories, the 1st Kansas Colored Volunteer Infantry that won the Battle of Honey Springs – to statehood, the immigration of free blacks into Oklahoma, and the all-black towns & Greenwood..." OK 2010

July 11, 2011 - VANDALIZED 2012 - Reconciliation Memorial, Pobrezje Park, Podgorica (Montenegro). "While many of the post-war monuments in the Balkans represent divisive views of history, there have been some attempts to create memorials which actively promote reconciliation. The inscription [of this monument] reads: 'To the civilian casualties of the wars in the former Yugoslavia in the period between 1991 & 2001 – never to be repeated.' Inaugurated on the anniversary of the Srebrenica genocide [July 11-13, 1995]. According to the culture ministry, it expresses 'the entire society’s commitment to the generally accepted principles of justice' & Montenegro’s determination 'to build itself as a state based on the respect for the principles of the rule of law, tolerance & human rights.' But in the year that followed its inauguration, the memorial was vandalised three times & the glass is now cracked & scored with scratches." EE 2011 VANDALIZED

2013 - Centro de Memoria, Paz y Reconciliation / Memory, Peace & Reconciliation Center, Bogotá (Columbia). "Bogotá decided to build a monument to life, a seed for the consolidation of a non-violent society: a centre for memory, reconciliation & peace. Juan Pablo Ortiz’s design was chosen over 41 other entries in a public competition." COLUMBIA 2013

May 2015 - Reconciliation Memorial, Kukenarup, Western Australia (Australia). "About 15 km west of Ravensthorpe. Prompts reconciliation between farming & Indigenous communities. [At] the region's original pastoral station established by the Dunn brothers in the 1860s, but also where a brutal massacre of about three dozen Noongar people took place 135 years ago. It has taken eight years of effort from both parties, but now the area is home to a memorial, picnic spot & walk trail. Noongar Elder Carol Petterson said it was one of the first memorials of its kind in Australia, acknowledging the past & reconciling the future for both the local Indigenous people & agricultural industry. 'It's important because it's a hallmark of the reconciliation process. Reconciliation is an action, not a word, and that's what's happened here today,' she said." AUSTRALIA 2015

June 1, 2016 - Jutland Memorial Park, Thyborøn, Jutland (Denmark). "Twenty-five 3.5 metre high stone obelisks mark each of the British & German ships that sank during the Battle of Jutland. A 26th commemorates the more than 600 fatalities on other ships that survived the day. Around these massive pillars of remembrance will be eventually placed individual 1.2 metre stones. One for for each of the 8,645 men killed in the North Sea action of May 31st–June 1st 1916. One stone for each person lost in the battle... The memorial is the vision of Gert Norman Andersen, marine explorer & founder of the Danish Sea War Museum which opened in September 2015." DENMARK WW-I

Future

Future - Place of Reconciliation, Valle de los Caidos (Spain). "The Spanish government has asked the Vatican for help in turming the Valle de los Caidos monument holding the remains of dictator Francisco Franco [1892-1975] into a place of reconciliation, a Vatican spokesman said on Saturday. Ministers made the request during the visit of Pope Benedict to Spain as part of a Roman Catholic World Youth Day which has seen hundreds of thousands of young people travel to Madrid from around the world to take part in religious festivities."

Future - Liberia Reconciliation Monument, Providence Island, Port of Monrovia (Liberia). "Honors the fallen victims of the recent civil uprising that resulted in many thousands of deaths of Liberian Citizens. Requested by the Minister of Information and Culture, the International Management Corporation (IMC) submitted a proposal to design and build... A laser beacon with alternating red, blue and white beams will be placed on top of the 150 ft monument. The base of the monument will serve as a respite for viewers to read and admire the inscriptions by notable statesmen."

"Reconciliation" by Josefina de Vasconcellos [1904-2005]

Originally named "Reunion." Now exists in in five different cities. According to Nigel Young (03Oct11), the artist originally had barbed wire between the two figures, but this was stolen by vandals & never replaced because authorties ruled that it was too dangerous. Three or four copies were paid for by Sir Richard Branson. Click here for the Wikipedia article.

	May 4, 1977 - "Reconciliation,", J.B. Priestley Library, University of Bradford, Bradford (England). Original statue by Josefina de Vasconcellos [1903-2004]. Unveiled by 1974 Nobel Peace Prize laureate Seán MacBride [1904-1988]. Originally called "Reunion." Rededicated in 1994. Click here for air view.		1995 - Peace Memorial Museum, Hiroshima (Japan). Photo by EWL Oct 2008. Figure at far left is Peter van den Dungen, Professor of Peace Studies, University of Bradford.
	1995 - Coventry Cathedral, Coventry (England).		1999 - Chapel of Reconcilation, Berlin Wall Memorial, Berlin (Germany). Click here to see with the chapel. Click here for distant view. /// This appeaers to be the only sculpture to include a Bible & barbed wire on the ground between the two figures.
	November 8, 2000 - Stormont Castle, Belfast (Northern Ireland). Click here for distant view. /// Four rocks in foreground are labeled Jerusalem (why?), Berlin, Hiroshima & Coventry.		Damaged by fire May 25, 2011 - J.B. Priestley Library, University of Bradford, Bradford (England). Paraphrase of notification from the dean's office: "The 'Reunion' statue by Josefina de Vasconcellos, which has historic significance for Peace Studies, was unfortunately damaged by fire on Wednesday night. Security have CCTV footage of what appears to be an arson attack by students and are intending to take further with the police. It is made of a kind of resin rather than metal so did suffer. Prompt action limited the damage though the tops of the figures' heads has suffered [sic]."

Please email your comments & questions to geovisual at comcast.net. Thank you.

Return to Peace Monuments main page.