PL Peace Tower – Tondabayashi, Japan - Atlas Obscura

Measuring around 600 feet high, this unusual tower is located at the Church of Perfect Liberty headquarters in Tondabayashi. The tower stands as a monument to all the perished souls of war throughout all time. Within the tower is a shrine in which all known names of the lives claimed in human conflict have been recorded on microfilm and stored in a golden container.

The structure was originally designed using clay by the church’s late second founder and was built in 1970. The newly developed technique of “shotcrete” was employed in the creation of the tower, formed by spraying concrete on to a wire netting.

Once a year, the Church of Perfect Liberty headquarters is the site of one of the world’s largest fireworks shows. Every August 1st, the members celebrate the passing of their first founder with what they call the “PL Art of Fireworks.” Unlike most fireworks shows, which fire around 5,000 shells, the PL show consists of around 25,000 shells fired. During the finale about 7,000 shells are shot off in unison, lighting nearly the entire sky.

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