Nagasaki Peace Park

Nagasaki Peace Park
平和公園

Frontal view of Peace Statue
Location Nagasaki, Japan
Designer Seibou Kitamura
Type Park with statues
Height 10 metres (33 ft)
Opening date April 1, 1955
Dedicated to Victims of the atomic bomb explosion on August 9, 1945
One of the international sculpture gifts at Nagasaki Peace Park

Nagasaki Peace Park is a park located in Nagasaki, Japan, commemorating the atomic bombing of the city on August 9, 1945 during World War II. It is next to the Atomic Bomb Museum and near the Peace Memorial Hall.

History

Established in 1955, and near to the hypocenter of the explosion, remnants of a concrete wall of Urakami Cathedral can still be seen. Urakami Cathedral was the grandest church in east Asia at the time. At the park's north end is the 10-meter-tall Peace Statue created by sculptor Seibo Kitamura of Nagasaki Prefecture. The statue's right hand points to the threat of nuclear weapons while the extended left hand symbolizes eternal peace. The mild face symbolizes divine grace and the gently closed eyes offer a prayer for the repose of the bomb victims' souls. The folded right leg and extended left leg signify both meditation and the initiative to stand up and rescue the people of the world. The statue represents a mixture of western and eastern art, religion, and ideology. Installed in front of the statue is a black marble vault containing the names of the atomic bomb victims and survivors who died in subsequent years. A plaque by the Peace Statue is titled Words from the Sculptor and reads:

"After experiencing that nightmarish war, that blood-curdling carnage, that unendurable horror, Who could walk away without praying for peace? This statue was created as a signpost in the struggle for global harmony. Standing ten meters tall, it conveys the profundity of knowledge and the beauty of health and virility. The right hand points to the atomic bomb, the left hand points to peace, and the face prays deeply for the victims of war. Transcending the barriers of race and evoking the qualities of Buddha and Go, it is a symbol of the greatest determination ever known in the history of Nagasaki and the highest hope of all mankind."

-Seibo Kitamura (Spring 1995)

Plaque

A plaque at the nearby hypocenter gives the following account and statistics of the damage caused that day.

At 11:02 A.M., August 9, 1945 an atomic bomb exploded 500 meters above this spot. The black stone monolith marks the hypocenter.
The fierce blast wind, heat rays reaching several thousand degrees and deadly radiation generated by the explosion crushed, burned, and killed everything in sight and reduced this entire area to a barren field of rubble.
About one-third of Nagasaki City was destroyed and 150,000 people killed or injured and it was said at the time that this area would be devoid of vegetation for 75 years. Now, the hypocenter remains as an international peace park and a symbol of the aspiration for world harmony.
DAMAGE CAUSED BY THE ATOMIC BOMB EXPLOSION
1. Leveled Area: 6.7 million square meters (2.59 square miles)
2. Damaged Houses:
Completely burned: 11,574
Completely destroyed: 1,326
Badly damaged: 5,509
Total structures damaged: 18,409
3. Casualties:
Killed: 73,884
Injured: 74,909
Total: 148,793

(Large numbers of people have died in the following years from the effects of radioactive poisoning.)

Peace Memorial Ceremony

Fountain of Peace in Nagasaki Peace Park with Peace Statue in the background

Every year, on 9 August, the anniversary of the atomic bombing, a Peace Memorial Ceremony is held in front of the statue and the Mayor of Nagasaki delivers a Peace Declaration to the World.[1]

At the south end of the park is a "Fountain of Peace". This was constructed in August, 1969, as a prayer for the repose of the souls of the many atomic bomb victims who died searching for water, and as a dedication to world peace. Lines from a poem by a girl named Sachiko Yamaguchi, who was nine at the time of the bombing, are carved on a black stone plaque in front of the fountain. It reads: "I was thirsty beyond endurance. There was something oily on the surface of the water, but I wanted water so badly that I drank it just as it was."

Peace Symbols Zone

In 1978 the city of Nagasaki established a "Peace Symbols Zone" on both sides of the park and invited donations of monuments from countries round the world. The following monuments can be seen in the park:

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Nagasaki Peace Park Monuments

The Monument for Korean Atomic Victims is located in Nagasaki Peace Park in Nagasaki, Japan. At the time of the atomic bombing in Nagasaki, there were many people of nationalities other than Japanese that were living in the area. There were an estimated 12,000 to 14,000 Koreans living in Nagasaki during the bombing. It is believed that up to 2,000 of them died because of the atomic bomb. At the time, those Koreans were being used as forced labor as a part of the Japanese war effort.

This monument commemorates the Korean Victims and serves as an apology to them and to the country. It is also a message asking for peace in the world, an abolition of nuclear weapons, and a peaceful reunification of the Korean Nation. The Monument for Korean Atomic Victims was unveiled on August 9, 1979.

Photos

Coordinates: 32°46′32″N 129°51′47″E / 32.77558°N 129.86312°E

References