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The Hiroshima Memorial Park is located on the area formerly known as Nakajima, an urban district of Hiroshima. The area was a central part of the commerce and administration of Hiroshima. It is believed that almost 7,000 people lived in the area that is now the Peace Memorial Park on August 6. 1945. On August 6, 1949, The HIroshima Peace Memorial City Construction Law declared that the entire Nakajima District should be devoted to peace memorials. Designed by Kenzo Tange, a professor at Tokyo University it was completed on April 1, 1954. The park contains many individual memorials as well as two museums. The Peace Memorial Museum and Hiroshima National Peace Memorial Hall for Atomic Bomb Victims are located in the park. |
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In
front of the West Building of The Peace Memorial Museum stands the statue
entitled Mother and Child in Storm. Built by: Hiroshima Municipal Federation
of Women's Associations, it was designed by Shin Hongo and completed in
1960. The image is that of a mother protecting her children. It symbolized
love so powerful that endures suffering and and overcomes grief. Many
of the victims of the atomic bomb were children. |
Located
in he center of the memorial park is The Memorial Monument for the City
of Hiroshima. Built in 1952, the monument dedicated the city of Hiroshima
as a city of peace. The monument was constructed to resemble an arch-shaped
house offering shelter to the victims of the bomb. Under the arch is the
A Bomb Cenotaph containing the register
of the deceased victims of the Atom Bomb. The registry contains over 200,000
names. Names are added when a person's death is tied to the effects of
the atomic bomb. The inscription on the monuments reads, "Let all
the souls here rest in peace, for we shall not repeat the evil."
Through the arch one can see the peace pond and flame as well as the remains
of the A Bomb Dome. |
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Along
with the arch, Professor Kenzo Tange designed the The Flame of Peace.
The base symbolizes two outstretched hands wrists together palms pointed
to the sky. This position expresses condolence for the victims who were
unable to satisfy their thirst for water and then the desire to end nuclear
weapons. The flame, lit on August 1, 1964, will burn until the day nuclear
weapons no longer exist. |
Less
than a mile from the hypocenter of the blast stood trees. The trees took
the full force of the blast losing all of their branches and leaves. The
trunks were hollowed out. The following spring, the trees, thought
to be dead, budded. These trees became a source of inspiration for the
people of Hiroshima. In May of 1973, the trees were transplanted into
the Memorial Peace Park. Many feared the trees would die after being transplanted,
but they continued to give off seeds. These seeds have been planted around
the world. |
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The
Children's Peace Monument was completed on Children's Day, May 5, in 1958.
The design is centered around the story of Sadako Sasaki. She was exposed
to the bombing at age two and consequently contracted leukemia. During
her brief hospital stay, Sadako and other patients received paper cranes
and learned of a legend. Legend had it, if you fold 1000 paper cranes,
your wish will come true. She began folding cranes in August with the
wish that she get better. On October 23, 1955, she died. Her classmates
led a movement to erect a monument in her name and in the name of all
the children affected by the atomic bomb. The monument is a girl holding
a folded crane on top of a three-legged pedestal. The stone under the
pedestal reads "This is our cry. This is our prayer. For building
peace in this world." Under the pedestal is a gold
crane and bell. In memory of Sadako and all others who died, bunches
of folded cranes are often left at the monument sites. The
Kid's Peace Station gives children a chance to explore this difficult
topic. |
The
bomb blast on August 6, 1945 killed over 400 member os the Nakajima-hon-machi
neighborhood. Any survivors were forced to move when the area became part
of the peace park. In memory of those lost from this particular neighborhood
a statue of Kannon, the goddess of peace, was erected. The goddess stands
on a map of the neighborhood which was formed with the help of survivors
memories as well as aerial photographs taken by the US military. The statue
symbolizes the Nakajima-hon-machi Association's views on their lost town
and memories. |
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Of
the nearly 200,000 people killed on August 6, 1945, 10% were Koreans.
Koreans were often forced to seek work in Japan during World War II. The
Japanese imperialism leading up to the war led many to seek work in Japan.
As the war progressed, many Koreans were brought to Japan and forced to
work in Japan to make up for labor shortage caused by the war. After the
dropping of the Atomic Bomb, the discrimination against the Koreans was
continued. The dead were not given funerals or memorial services. Finally
on April 10, 1970, the present memorial was completed. While a monument
to the nearly 20,000 Koreans who died that day was finally complete, it
was placed outside the Memorial Park until July 1999 when it was moved
to its current location. The monument stands on the back of a turtle and
is engraved with the explanation, "Souls of the dead ride to heaven
on the backs of turtles." |
The
Atomic Bomb Memorial Mound, completed in 1955, is located at the site
of mass cremation after the dropping the atomic bomb. A vault was built
that at one time contained the unclaimed ashes of approximately 70,000
people. In 1955, over 2,000 individual containers were placed in the vault.
As of 2002, 840 remain unclaimed. Many of ashes remained unclaimed due
to the fact that entire families died or the person's identity was never
discovered. |
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The
Peace Bell was finished on September 20, 1964. It was created by Masahiko
Katori. The bell has a map of the world with no national boundaries to
symbolize one world. The platform symbolizes the hope for the end of atomic
weapons through the design which resembles the radiation warning mark.
There is also a mirror that reflects the hearts of those who ring the
bell. Near the bell is a pond with lotus plants. The lotus plant was used
to reduce the pain of burns after the atomic bombing. Any person can ring
the bell. |
The
Peace Clock Tower was completed in October 1967. IT is a spherical clock
that faces three directions and is on a tower made of three pillars and
equilateral triangles. It reaches approximately 60 feet in the air. The
Hiroshima Rijo Lions Club built the tower. At 8:15 each day it chimes
"No more Hiroshimas" |
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The
Building at right, now known as the A Bomb Dome, began its life as the
Hiroshima Prefectural Commercial
Exhibition Hall. It was designed by Czech architect Jan Letzel and
constructed in 1915. The building sits on The
Motoyasu River. The building's name changed twice before the government
stopped using it for Industrial Promotion and began using it for an office
of public works in March 1944. The building was almost directly under
the blast and was engulfed in flames. Everyone in it was killed. Some
walls and the wire framework of the dome remained. It was not until 1966
that the city decided to preserve it indefinitely. In December 1996 it
was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List. |
The
Memorial Tower to the Mobilized Students was completed in 1967. During
World War II, the Japanese government needed to fill the labor shortage.
In August 1944, the government passed the Student Labor Service Act. Through
this act middle and high school students were required to perform labor
in places like factories. Many of the students in Hiroshima participated
in demolition to create fire breaks in the city to prevent the spread
of fire in case of air strikes. Over 8,000 students were working in Hiroshima
City on August 6, 1945. About 6,000 died on that day. Conflict over which
student's names could be listed in another shrine moved families to create
this monument. It includes a statue
which is often flanked by the symbolic cranes. |
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The
Atom Bomb Victim's Memorial was constructed in 1982. The inspiration for
this monument came from high school students who had excavated roof tiles
that had been melted and buried in the Motoyasu River. The theme of the
statue is centered around the soul of a victim going to heaven. The monument
is less than 150meters from the hypocenter. |
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July 2005 Created - |
Thursday, July 28, 2005
Last Revised -
