Peace Monuments Dedicated in 1965-1969

Right click image to enlarge.

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.

August 6, 1965 - World Friendship Center (WFC), 8-10 Higashi Kan-on, Nishi-ku, Hiroshima (Japan). Founded on 20th anniversary of the bomb by American Barbara Leonard Reynolds [1915-1990] who also founded the Peace Resources Center (PRC) at Wilmington College of Ohio (USA) in 1975. "Not only a 'home away from home' for travelers to Hiroshima, it is a place where local Hiroshima residents volunteer their hospitality of peace in a variety of activities." Supported by Brethren Volunteer Service (BVS) & by the American Committee of the WFC, currently chaired by Mary Ann Albert of Warsaw, Indiana (USA).

April 15, 1966 - Statue of Abraham Lincoln, Luis G. Urbina Park (since renamed Parque Lincoln), Polanco, Mexico City (Mexico). Gift of the United States presented by President Lyndon B. Johnson. Reproduction of a satue made in 1887 by Augustus Saint-Gaudens for Chicago's Lincoln Park.

1969 - Statue of Benito Juarez, Foggy Bottom, Virginia & New Hampshire Avenues, Washington, DC. (USA). Sculpted by Enrique Alciati. Gift from Mexico in exchange for a statue of Abraham Lincoln. Juarez is the 'George Washington of Mexico,' and the statue points to the bust of Washington at George Washington University. Benito Pablo Juarez Garcia [1806-1872] was a full-blooded Zapotec Indian who became the first president of Mexico. He corresponded with Abraham Lincoln to get advice on how to establish a democracy, particularly one plagued with interracial problems.

May 9, 1966 - Statue of Peace ("New Leaves"), in front of Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum, Hiroshima (Japan). By sculptor Katsuzo Entsuba. Built by Hiroshima South District Rotary Club. Inscribed with poem by Dr. Hideki Yukawa (first Nobel laureate from Japan): "O god of evil, do not come this way again. This place is reserved for those who pray for peace." #32 of 56 "cenotaphs & monuments" on the Virtual E-Tour.

1966 - Monument to Eternal Peace Between Japan & China, Hanaoka, Nagano Prefecture (Japan). "In the 1950s, the Japan-China Friendship Association (Nit-Chu Yuko Kyokai) excavated remains of the forced laborers who died in Hanaoka, sent them to the People’s Republic of China, and built a monument to remember the victims and atone for the atrocity."

1966 - Peace Pagoda, on hill north of railway station, Hiroshima (Japan). Nipponzan Myohoji Buddhist Order. Commemorates lives lost in the A-bomb blast, and contains gifts of Buddha's ashes from the then Prime Minister of India and from Mongolian Buddhists. Visited by RH.

1966 - Pacim in Terris, 96 Covered Bridge Road, Warwick, New York (USA). Sculptures & sculpture garden created by Dutch-born Dr. Frederick Franck [1909-2006]. Dedicated to Dr. Albert Schweitzer (with whom Dr. Franck practiced dentistry in Gabon 1958-1961), Pope John XXIII (whom he sketched during the Second Vatican Council), and the Buddhist sage Daisetz T. Suzuki (who "taught me to think"). Images show entrance sculpture, St. Francis sculpture, Seven Generations, & Hiroshima--The Unkillable Human.

July 31, 1966 - Merciful Consoling Kannon for Mobilized A-bomb Victim Students, on left bank of Motoyasu-gawa River, Hiroshima (Japan). Kannon = Goddess of Mercy. #51 of 56 "cenotaphs & monuments" on the Virtual E-Tour. Photo by EWL. Note stone lantern & peace pole. Statue of the Consoling Kannon is virtually covered with garlands of origami peace cranes.

September 28, 1966 - T.M.C. Asser Instituut, The Hague (Netherlands). "A leading research institute in the fields of Private and Public International Law, European Law and International Commercial Arbitration." Tobias Michael Carel Asser [1838-1913] & Alfred Fried [1864-1921] shared the 1911 Nobel Peace Prize.

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

1967 - Hiroshima Peace Bell, Peace Memorial Museum (East Building), Hiroshima (Japan). Small bell, displayed indoors (left image), and rung outdoors (right image) during the annual Peace Memorial Ceremony on August 6 (Hiroshima Day). Designed by Masahiko Katori [1899-1988]. Has calligraphy by Shigeru Yoshida [1878-1967], former prime minister of Japan. Cast by Oigo Bell Works, Takaoka, Toyama Prefecture (Japan). Left image by Satoko Nishizawa.

1967 - Maruki Gallery for the Hiroshima Panels, 1401 Shimoarako, Higashi Matuyama, Saitama Prefecture (Japan). Preserves 14 of the 15 panels painted by Iri & Toshi Maruki between 1950 & 1982 to show the atomic boming of Hiroshima & Nagasaki. Museum includes paintings of Auschwitz, Minamata & Nanking. Click here for Wikipedia article.

1967 - Musée Albert Schwietzer / Albert Schwietzer Museum, Gunsbach, Département de Haut-Rhin (France). Albert Schweitzer [1875-1965] fit construire cette maison en 1928 avec l'argent du Prix Goethe de la ville de Francfort.

1967 - Knights of Columbus Peace Monument, West End of Dieppe Park, Windsor, Ontario (Canada). Three modernistic columns representing the three persons of the Trinity as they look down on a troubled, war-torn world. Inscribed "Pray for Peace." Designed by Donald Ailles & produced by the Smith Monument Company of Toronto. Erected in Canada's Centennial Year of 1967 by the Knights of Columbus of Ontario "as an inspiration to world peace, 1867-1967."

1967 - Musée Albert Schwietzer / Albert Schweitzer Museum, Gunsbach, Département de Haut-Rhin (France). "Schweitzer fit construire cette maison en 1928 avec l'argent du Prix Goethe de la ville de Francfort." Albert Schweitzer [1875-1965] received the 1952 Nobel Peace Prize.

1967? - Mansion House Hotel, 45 High Street, Holbeach, Lincs., England (UK). This is the birthplace of Sir Norman Angell [1872-1967] who received the 1933 Nobel Peace Prize. A plaque honoring him was unveiled December 6, 2008, by the lord mayor of Bradford at The Peace Museum, Bradford, England (UK). The plaque is location #26 on the Bradford Peace Trail: A Walk Around Bradford, City of Peace. Click here for a 7-minute video of the trail on YouTube.

1967? - Statue of Albert Lutuli, Nobel Square, Victoria & Alfred Waterfront, Cape Town.(South Africa). Albert Lutuli [1898-1967] received the 1960 Nobel Peace Prize.

July 15, 1967 - Memorial Tower to the Mobilized Students, on left bank of Motoyasu-gawa River, Hiroshima (Japan). #42 of 56 "cenotaphs & monuments" on the Virtual E-Tour.

August 1967 - Statue of the Praying Child, near the Hypocenter, Nagasaki Peace Park, Nagasaki (Japan). "It is estimated that about 10,000 children died in the atomic bombing. This memorial was erected to symbolize the aspirations for lasting world peace held by the citizens of Nagasaki, with the sympathy and support of peace-lovers and children all over Japan and the world. The base of the memorial is constructed using stones from each prefecture in Japan and from 15 foreign countries."

August 1967 - Nagasaki Korean Atomic Bomb Victims' Memorial, near the Hypocenter, Nagasaki Peace Park, Nagasaki (Japan). "Inspired by the July 1967 discovery of the bones of Korean bomb victims at Seikoin in the Oura Motomachi district, this memorial is dedicated to the many Koreans who, having been forced into hard labor by the Japanese military, were killed in the atomic bombing of Nagasaki."

August 6, 1967 - Cherry Tree, Tavistock Square, London (England). "Planted by the mayor of Camden in memory of the victims of Hiroshima. On each anniversary, meetings are held to remember the victims of the two atomic bombs dropped on Japan. In 1986 to mark the UN International Year of Peace, a field maple was planted by the League of Jewish Women." One of 21 peace monuments named by the PPU website. Named in "A Peace Trail Through London" by Valerie Flessati (1998).

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.

October 27, 1967 - Theodore Roosevelt Island National Memorial, Potomac River, Washington, DC (USA). Theodore Roosevelt [1858-1919] was US President 1901-1909 and received the 1906 Nobel Peace Prize. NB: There are many other Roosevelt memorials in the US not shown here.

October 28, 1967 - Clock Tower of Peace, Peace Memoial Park (northern end), Hiroshima (Japan). Constructed by the Hiroshima Rijo Lions Club. #07 of 56 "cenotaphs & monuments" on the Virtual E-Tour.

June 15, 1968 - Acorns for Peace, Unity Lawn, Coventry Cathedral, Coventry (England). "John Lennon and Yoko Ono visited Coventry Cathedral in 1968 to plant acorns as part of their Acorns For Peace tour (as mentioned in The Ballad of John and Yoko). The acorns were, sadly, stolen." "The couple's very first peace event and as part of the cathedral's sculptural exhibition. The acorns were planted on an east-west axis, symbolizing both John and Yoko's love and peace between east and west." Click here for more information.

June 1968 - Ruta de la Amistad / Route of Friendship, Olympics, Mexico City (Mexico). Nineteen sculptures along a 17 kilometer segment of the Anillo Periferico / Preferential Highway. Designed by international artists for the 1968 Olympic Games.

1968 - Campana de Dolores / Bell of Dolores, Los Angeles, California (USA). Replica of the famous bell which hangs in the Zocolo in Mexico City (Mexico).

1968 - Statue of Mahatma Gandhi, Tavistock Square, London (England). Unveiled by Prime Minister Harold Wilson. The square also contains a conscientious objectors monument and a Hiroshima cherry tree (qv). One of 21 peace monuments named by the PPU website. Named in "A Peace Trail Through London" by Valerie Flessati (1998). Click here for other Gandhi monuments.

1968 - Peace Pagoda, Peace Plaza, Nihonmachi/Japantown, San Francisco, California (USA). Designed by Japanese architect Yoshiro Taniguchi [1900-1955] and presented to San Francisco by the people of Osaka (Japan).

1968 - Martin Luther King, Jr., Center for Nonviolent Social Change, Inc., Atlanta, Georgia (USA). Includes King's tomb (in lake in photo), an eternal flame, Rosa Parks room, and Mahatma Gandhi room. Click here for additional information. Entry #242 in the "Peace Movement Directory" by James Richard Bennett (2001). (Martin Luther King, Jr. received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964. He was assassinated in Memphis, Tennessee, on April 4, 1968.)

1968 - "The Hawk for Peace," Berkeley Art Museum & Pacific Film Archive, University of California, Berkeley, California (USA). By Alexander Calder [1898-1976]. Click here for list of Calder sculptures in the USA, of which only the one in Berkeley is named for peace.

1968 - Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, One Woodrow Wilson Plaza, 1300 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC (USA). "Established by an act of Congress. Our nation's official living memorial to President Woodrow Wilson." Woodrow Wilson [1856-1924] was president of Princeton University 1902-1910 & president of the USA 1913-1921. He received the 1919 Nobel Peace Prize.

1968? - Memorial to René Cassin, Forbach, Moselle (France). René Cassin [1887-1976] received the 1968 Nobel Peace Prize.

1969 - "The Sphere" (World Peace Monument), Battery Park, New York City, New York (USA). Designed by German sculptor Fritz Koenig. Stood in the plaza between the two World Trade Center (WTC) towers and damaged on September 11, 2001. Left unrepaired and moved to Battery Park as a memorial to the ictims of the attacks.

1969 - Henri Dunant Museum, Asylstrasse 2, Heiden (Switzerland). In the nursing home where he lived from 1892 until his death in 1910. "A special room is devoted to his vision of a world without war & social need." Henry Dunant [1828-1910] founded the International Red Cross. He & Frédéric Passy [1822-1912] received the first (1901) Nobel Peace Prize.

1969 - Amistad Dam, between Del Rio, Texas (USA). & Cuidad Acuna (Mexico). Image shows both national emblems on the border inthe middle of the dam.

1969 - Aga Kahn Palace, Pune, Maharashtra (India). Where Gandhi, his wife Kasturba & his secretary Mahadevbhai Desai were interned by the British from August 9, 1942 to May 6, 1944 (& where the latter two died). Palace of the Aga Khan constructed in 1892. Museum management transferred to the Gandhi Memorial Society in 1980.

1969? - Gandhi Darshan or Gandhi Samadhi, Rajghat, New Delhi (India). Merged in September 1984 with Gandhi Smriti (qv) to form "Gandhi Smriti and Darshan Samiti" (GSDS).

1969 - Winston Churchill Memorial & Library in the United States, Westminster College, Fulton, Missouri (USA). Includes a "museum for peace" in the undercroft of the Church of St. Mary the Virgin, Aldermanbury (12th century) from the middle of London. Redesigned by Sir Christopher Wren [1632-1723] in 1677, bombed out during World War II, & relocated to Fulton in the 1960's. Right image shows section of the Berlin Wall erected outside the church. Churchill made his famous "Iron Curtain" speech at Westminster College in 1946, & Mikhail Gorbachev gave a speech there in 1992 declaring the end of the Cold War.

July 1969 - Mainanek Memorial, Lublin (Poland). Least changed of the Nazi extermination camps. "On the 25th anniversary of its liberation [by the Russian army], a large monument designed by Victor Tolkin was constructed at the site. It consists of two parts: a large gate monument at the camp's entrance (left image) & a large mausoleum (right image) holding ashes of the victims at its opposite end."

August 1969 - Fountain of Peace, Nagasaki Peace Park, Nagasaki (Japan). Sprays water in the shape of a dove’s wings. Erected by Nagasaki City and the National Council for World Peace & the Abolition of Nuclear Weapons with donations from all over Japan. Signifies pity on people who died begging for water in 1945.