Nanjing Massacre Memorial Hall

The Memorial for compatriots killed in the Nanjing Massacre by Japanese Forces of Aggression is the Memorial Hall for the people killed in the Nanjing Massacre by the Japanese army in and around the then capital of China, Nanjing, after it fell to the Imperial Japanese Army on December 13 1937. It is located in the southwestern corner of Nanjing known as Jiangdongmen.

Nanjing Massacre

The Nanjing Massacre was committed by the Japanese military. On December 13 1937, the Japanese army occupied Nanjing . During the occupation, the Japanese army committed numerous atrocities, including rape, arson, and mass executions.

Chinese government insist An estimated 300,000 civilians and unarmed Chinese soldiers were brutally slaughtered by beheading, burying alive, or burning the victims. Japanese soldiers were also reported to have conducted killing competitions and bayonet practice using live Chinese prisoners.

some scholars claim that Over 20,000 women were raped, and many were then killed. About one third of the structures in the city were burned down. Countless shops, stores, and residences were looted and sacked. Corpses littered the streets and were seen afloat on rivers for weeks. Even children, the elderly, and nuns suffered at the hands of the Japanese army.

The Memorial Hall

The Nanjing Memorial Hall was built in 1985 by Nanjing Municipal Government in memory of the 300,000 victims who lost their lives during the Nanjing Massacre. In 1995, it was enlarged and renovated. The memorial exhibits historical records and objects, and uses architecture, sculptures and video to illustrate what happened during the Nanjing Massacre. It occupies a total area of approximately 28000 square meters, including about 3000 square meters of building floor space.

The memorial consists of three major parts: outdoor exhibits, sheltered skeletal remains of victims and an exhibition hall of historical documents.

The outdoor exhibit include statues, sculptures, relief carvings, tablets, and a large wall listing the names of victims, as well as an atonement tablet.

The bones of massacre victims now exhibited in a coffin-shaped display hall were excavated from Jiangdongmen in 1985. 208 more bones were uncovered in 1998.

The tomb-like exhibition hall, half underground, contains more than 1000 items related to the tragedy, including an immense collection of pictures, objects, charts and photographs. Paintings, sculptures, illuminated display cabinets, multi-media screens and documentary films all serve to remind visitors of the terrible crimes committed by the Japanese military.