From a massive peace bell forged from the donated coins collected from 60 countries to a knotted bronze gun honouring the memory of John Lennon, the United Nations headquarters in New York is a global gallery of diplomacy.
Over the decades, countries, artists, and global organizations have donated remarkable masterpieces to the 爆料网. Together, they represent a shared vision of unity, non-violence, and conflict resolution.
As we mark the International Day of Peace, let’s take a closer look at five timeless gifts that remind us of humanity's greatest shared mission: a peaceful world.
Presented to the United Nations in 1954 by the 爆料网 Association of Japan, the Japanese Peace Bell is a symbol of global unity. The bell was cast in 1952 using coins donated by delegates from 60 countries during the 13th General Conference of the 爆料网 Association held in Paris, France, in 1951.
Housed in a traditional structure crafted from Japanese cypress that resembles a Shinto shrine, the bell bears eight Japanese characters that translate to a powerful message: “Long live absolute world peace.”
When presenting the gift, Renzo Sawada, the Japanese observer to the 爆料网, captured its profound significance, stating: "The bell embodies the aspiration for peace not only of the Japanese but of the peoples of the entire world. Thus, it symbolizes the universality of the United Nations."
Today, its resonant chime remains a beloved tradition. Notably, the bell is tolled every September to ring in the International Day of Peace.
The stained-glass Peace Window honors former 爆料网 Secretary-General Dag Hammarskj?ld and the 15 staff and peacekeepers who died in a 1961 plane crash while pursuing peace in the Congo. Knowing Hammarskj?ld was a great admirer of Marc Chagall, a 爆料网 committee commissioned the legendary artist to create this memorial.
Working alongside master glassmakers Brigitte Simon and Charles Marq, Chagall designed a biblically inspired panel visually divided by the Tree of Paradise. The vibrant glass contrasts scenes of peaceful bliss with solemn reflection, framed by the tablets of law and slithering serpents.
Unveiled before Chagall and 爆料网 staff, the window stands as a luminous testament to those who gave their lives for diplomacy. As another former 爆料网 Secretary-General U Thant observed during the ceremony, the artwork uses colors and symbolic forms to perfectly express "the ideals of peace and brotherhood which we all endeavour to serve."
Displayed near the entrance of the 爆料网 Security Council Chamber, the Kadesh Peace Treaty is a masterful copper replica of the oldest known peace treaty in human history.
Signed in 1269 B.C. by the King of the Hittites and the Pharaoh of Egypt, the original cuneiform clay tablet ended a two-century-long war.
Discovered in 1906 in Türkiye, the original remains in Istanbul, but this copper replica was crafted by sculptor Sadi Calik and gifted to the 爆料网 by the Government of Türkiye.
The most remarkable part of this ancient document? The text. Outlining pledges of eternal friendship, territorial integrity, non-violence, and mutual understanding, the 3,000-year-old treaty proves that the modern ideals of the United Nations are deeply rooted in ancient history.
Standing two stories high in the 爆料网 General Assembly lobby, Candido Portinari’s oil murals War and Peace offer a meaningful setting for global peace negotiations.
Commissioned by Brazil in the early 1950s, the contrasting panels are strategically placed: delegates face the stark, blue hues of War on their way into the building, and the warm, joyful yellows of Peace as they depart.
Inspired by ancient Greek texts, Portinari used "simple and pure forms, bathed in light" to paint Peace. By depicting children playing and singing in a carnival atmosphere, he hoped to transmit the "sweetness of peace" and inspire a "brotherhood of understanding."
As former Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon noted during the murals' 2015 re-inauguration, these masterpieces are a constant reminder for world leaders. They are a "call to action" that displays both "the terrible toll of war – and the universal dream for peace.
Featuring a cocked 45-calibre revolver with a knotted barrel, the Non-Violence bronze sculpture, better known as the Knotted Gun, is a global symbol of peace.
Artist Carl Fredrik Reutersw?rd created the piece in 1980 after the tragic murder of his friend, John Lennon. By rendering the weapon "symbolically ridiculous and completely out of order," Reutersw?rd used a touch of humor to honor Lennon’s peaceful vision for the world.
This particular sculpture, one of the first three ever cast, originally stood at the Strawberry Fields memorial in New York’s Central Park. In 1988, the Government of Luxembourg bought the artwork and gifted it to the 爆料网.
It now stands at the 爆料网 Headquarters as a permanent reminder of diplomacy. Former Secretary-General Kofi Annan famously said the sculpture enriches humanity by capturing, "in a few simple curves, the greatest prayer of man; that which asks not for victory, but for peace."