About this place

The Memorial Hall of the Victims of the Nanjing Massacre (1937-1938) is located on one of the sites where actual human bones from the victims themselves were excavated.  It is the biggest official memorial place of the Nanjing Massacre, also known as "The Rape of Nanjing".  The Memorial Hall holds museum status and is the first museum in China commemorating the War of Resistance against Japan from 1937 to 1945.  It has received over 8 million visitors from home and abroad since its founding in 1985.  In order to increase awareness concerning the massacre committed by the Japanese aggressors, the Nanjing City Committee of the Communist Party of China and the city government have subsidized the museum to allow free admission for all visitors.
 
Upon entering the hall, visitors will see a big bell with an inscription urging people not to forget history. Further along inside, a path of bronze footprints representing 222 witnesses of the tragedy stretches in front of visitors.  A building named "wan ren keng", which means pit of ten thousand corpses, houses the skeletons excavated at Jiangdong Gate.  In the Exhibition Room and Movie Room numerous pictures, audio recordings, and videos document the massacre.  In the Reading Room, there are archives and other materials related to the Nanjing Massacre.
 
The Memorial Campaigns
 
Every year at 10:00am on December 13th, loud air-defense sirens can be heard across Nanjing.  The sirens mark the Nanjing Massacre and remind people not to forget this national humiliation.  Buses and cars honk their horns in remembrance of the 300,000 deaths from the slaughter.  People from all walks of life, from home and abroad, flock to the Memorial Hall to mourn the dead. They hold candles and chrysanthemums, stand in silent tribute, and light candles at night to commemorate the 300,000 compatriots.
 

Take bus 7, 37 or 61 to Chanan bus stop (茶南站).  You can see the walls of the Memorial Hall from the bus stop.  Walk forward about 100 meters to reach the gate.  It is also right next to the Nanjing Brocade Museum.