To commend foreigners who helped save Chinese people during the Nanjing Massacre, an award ceremony for the Zijin Grass International Commemorative Medal of Peace was held in Nanjing on Dec 13. Two foreigners, the niece of Bernhard Arp Sindberg and the niece of Karl Günther, were conferred the medal.
The main pattern on the medal is the Zijin Grass, or Violet Orychopragmus, a familiar plant for Nanjing residents. In the center of the medal is a seal with the character yi, meaning justice and symbolizing the foreigners' brave defense of justice and priceless love for Nanjing refugees. Around that character are four peace pigeons with their wings wide open.
Bernhard Arp Sindberg (1911-1983) was born in Aarhus, Denmark and Karl Günther (1903-1987) was a German born in Tangshan city, China. When Nanjing was occupied by the Japanese troops, they formed the "Jiangnan Cement refugee camp" and protected over 20,000 refugees.
