Non-Violence, Bronze sculpture series at United Nations Headquarters, US
Non-Violence is a bronze sculpture from a series of peace-promoting artworks at the entrance of the UN Headquarters in New York. The form shows a revolver with a knotted barrel and reaches a height of more than 4 meters (about 15 feet).
Carl Fredrik Reuterswärd created the first piece in 1985 as a response to the death of John Lennon five years earlier. The Luxembourg government acquired the work and donated it to the United Nations in 1988.
The sculpture is known as The Knotted Gun, or Den knutna revolvern in Swedish. Its image became the logo of The Non-Violence Project, founded in 1993, and has appeared on United Nations stamps and book covers. Since 2019, small versions cast from melted confiscated firearms have been produced under the name Humanium Metal.
The sculpture stands at the visitor entrance and is visible from outside without needing a tour of the UN building. Access to the public plaza in front of the entrance is possible during normal daytime hours.
Around 30 replicas of the sculpture now stand in different cities worldwide, from Cape Town to Stockholm. The copies serve local peace initiatives and educational institutions as symbols against armed violence.
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