Children's Peace Monument, Peace monument in Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park, Japan
The Children's Peace Monument is a tall gray stone arch that splits into two legs near the ground and meets at a rounded top. On top stands a dark bronze figure of a young person holding a large folded paper crane high above their head, and a second small bronze figure clings to the monument's right side below the apex. Low rectangular display panels with colorful drawings and papers surround its base.
The monument was constructed in 1958, funded by donations from Japanese students across over 3,200 schools. It was built as a memorial to children affected by the atomic bombing in Hiroshima.
The monument honors the story of Sadako Sasaki, who folded paper cranes while battling illness. Visitors from around the world now bring folded cranes as offerings, continuing this gesture of hope in her memory.
The monument is located in the eastern section of Peace Memorial Park and is easily accessible on foot. The area around the statue provides clear views of the bronze figures and the surrounding display cases filled with paper cranes.
Inside the monument hangs a bell whose golden crane-shaped weight swings in the wind and rings like a wind chime; the characters on the bell were brushed by Nobel laureate Hideki Yukawa, who donated the bell and crane.
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