Peace Clock Tower

Peace Clock Tower stands on the north side of Peace Memorial Park and is about 20 m tall. It was completed in 1967, the year after the Atomic Bomb Dome was designated for permanent preservation. Its distinctive three-steel-frame form—appearing twisted partway up—symbolizes, from bottom to top, "Hiroshima before the bombing," "Hiroshima writhing in agony after the bombing," and "a future rising toward peace after overcoming hardship." The three steel frames are also said to represent citizens’ hands praying for peace, supporting a 2 m-diameter sphere symbolizing all humanity. On three sides of the sphere are clocks that were renovated in 2019. A speaker above the clocks plays a chime of "The Song of the Peace Clock Tower" (composed by Shiro Ota) every morning at 8:15, the time of the bombing, carrying a "No more Hiroshima" prayer to the world. This sound, along with the Peace Bell and bells used at the August 6 Peace Memorial Ceremony, was selected in 1996 for Japan’s "100 Soundscapes to Preserve" by the Environment Agency (now the Ministry of the Environment).