The Peace Crane

In Japan the crane is known as 'the bird of happiness’.  Legend has it that the crane will live for 1000 years.  Because they pair for life, cranes are a symbol of fidelity. They are also symbols of longevity and are often drawn with pine trees, tortoises, stones and bamboo, which are all symbols of long life. Cranes are also associated with good fortune and prosperity.

The oldest known use of the motif of a thousand cranes is a 50 foot long scroll by Sotatsu, an artist of the early 17th Century. The theme was repeated innumerable times in art on screens and walls. Inevitably the crane's reputation for long life and prosperity became a symbol of good health, and origami cranes became a popular gift for those who were ill.  The story said that anyone who was ill should make 1,000 paper cranes and the gods would grant them a wish.

Sadako, was a two year old girl living in Japan at the time the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima.  While she survived the bombing, she became ill ten year later with leukemia.  Learning of the legend of the cranes, and their healing power, she began to fold cranes.  She hoped that the gods would grant her wish to get well so that she could run again.

Within a month, Sadako folded 1000 paper cranes, and kept folding from scraps of paper she could scrounge up at the hospital, or that friends brought her. But her wish did not come true. She died a short while later.    Her legacy persists, however. A peace memorial was created in Hiroshima to honor Sadako, and all children killed by the atomic bomb.  Each year, thousands of cranes are sent from all over the world to this monument, and other peace monuments around the world.