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Peace Park
Nagasaki National Peace Memorial Hall For the Atomic Bomb Victims
The ground level features a water basin made of black granite and tempered glass, measuring 29 meters in diameter. After dark, 70,000 optical fibers at the bottom of the basin are illuminated, creating a solemn atmosphere. This number represents the approximately 70,000 victims who perished in the atomic bombing.
From the basin, visitors enter the memorial hall.
The hall consists of several rooms dedicated to peace, serving as a place for prayer for the souls of all atomic bomb victims.
Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Museum
The museum presents extensive historical materials related to the atomic bombing, documenting the devastation immediately following the attack, the events that led to the bombing, the ongoing global nuclear arms race, and humanity’s profound yearning for a nuclear-free world. It serves as a place of learning and reflection, helping visitors understand the urgent need for the total abolition of nuclear weapons and the pursuit of permanent world peace.
More about the Museum, Click here.
Monuments in Learning Zone
Descending the stairway, you will reach the educational area of the park, which includes the Ground Zero monument. This zone also features the exposed stratum preserved since the bombing, a remaining section of the wall of Urakami Cathedral, and the surviving stone lantern from Seitokuji Temple.
Monuments in Praying Zone
The Nagasaki Vowing Fire (Nagasaki no Chikai no Hi)
The Mother and Child in Peace Statue (Heiwi no Haha to Ko no Zō)
The Child Praying for Peace Statue (Heiwa o Inoru Ko no Zō)
The Monument for the 50th Anniversary of Radiation Exposure (Hibaku 50-shūnen Kinenhi)
Stream Under
People exposed to the atomic bomb’s heat rays, which reached temperatures of approximately 4,000°C, fled to the stream desperate for water. Due to their unsurvivable injuries, most died there even after drinking, and the area became the site of a devastating scene. To this day, the stream is remembered as a place of profound tragedy.
Stratum at the time of the bombing
A pile of scattered roof tiles and bricks, burnt soil, and melted glass remains preserved exactly as it was found after the bombing.
The Remaining Wall of Uragami Cathedal
In 1925, the original Urakami Cathedral, constructed in the Romanesque style—characterized by thick walls supporting stone arches, as seen in structures like Notre Dame in France—was completed after 30 years of work. Yet just two decades later, it was reduced to ruins by a single atomic bomb dropped from a B-29, leaving only sections of the walls standing. The remaining southern wall has since been relocated to this site.
Ground Zero
In 1968, a rectangular stone column was erected as the Atomic Bomb Hypocenter Monument. In front of it, an offering box was placed to hold microfilms containing a list of the victims’ names. The concentric circles around the column represent the spread of the destruction caused by the atomic bomb.
Stone Lanters of Syotoku Temple
In 1626, Shōtokuji Temple was founded one kilometer to the south of this location. While the main hall was destroyed by fire, this set of stone lanterns remained intact. They were relocated to the park in 1949.
Air Raid Shelters
The remains of an air-raid shelter close to ground zero have been relocated. All the people inside died there.
Peace Fountain
The atomic bomb turned Nagasaki into a fiery hellscape. Victims exposed to intense heat, radiation, and the blast suffered severe burns and peeling skin. They died in agony, their pleas for “Water, water…” echoing amidst the devastation. The Peace Spring was built to offer clean, clear water to these souls, praying for their repose and symbolically quenching the thirst they endured in their final moments. The water from this spring is now used as holy water in the annual Peace Ceremony held every August 9th.
Monuments in Wishing Zone
Nagasaki Bell
The Statue of a Girl
The Flower of Life and Peace
Earth Constellation
Infinity
Sun and Crane
The Win of Peace over War
Hymn for Life
Peace
The Remains of Uragami Branch Prison of Nagasaki Prison
Nineteen officers, thirty-five residents of the officers’ quarters, and eighty-one prisoners were killed instantly in the attack. The foundation remains preserved as a silent witness to the tragedy.
Peace Statue
The late Mr. Saibo Kitamura, a renowned sculptor and native of Nagasaki, spent five years creating this monumental statue, which stands 10 meters high and weighs 30 tons.
The statue’s powerful symbolism conveys a universal plea: the right hand points to the sky as a warning of the existential threat of nuclear weapons, while the horizontally extended left hand represents the hope for lasting world peace. The figure’s gently closed eyes express a prayer for the souls of the victims.
Embracing a spirit that transcends individual faiths—evoking the compassion of Jesus or the mercy of Buddha—this is a uniquely non-denominational monument, dedicated solely to universal peace and the repose of all who perished.
